#In some ways it was like reading a really a well crafted and cleverly written medieval royalty AU

[paint-lady]

hey, if you don't mind, i want your advice: i'm going to be running a chronicle set in chicago (i am using the chicago by night 5e book) for players who are new to vampire for the most part in a few days and i can't For The Life of Me to come up with an interesting chronicle hook (yeah i have read the hooks in the book). any ideas/suggestions/general advice?

Hiya! I could talk your ears off on how I write my chronicles- so hopefully I have taken all my processes and reduced it down to a lovely World of Darkness jam. 

Here are two good hooks I just came up with- feel free to use them! The third is what I got for my first chronicle, and I just think its a narrative that works very well for new players.

>Option 1: Guilty Until Proven Innocent ”Chicago is a series of paradoxes and transitions, of ever changing paradigms and whimsy,” (CbN 47). Have your coterie be newbies to the city. Ask why they have come to Chicago. Power? A new start? Perhaps this is a political arrangement between the clan of one city with another. Whatever their reason, they have arrived right when a Primogen vanishes- and guess who is first on the suspect list? The fresh faces on the streets >:) The coterie, having barely settled, has to suddenly prove their innocence. And finding evidence lets them uncover something much more sinister....

This one is ideal for new players as it sets everyone on an equal footing. Even if they create a character that has been a vampire for 50+ years and has amassed several dots of influence, herd, status- whatever, they are still new to the city. And being new means you have to start all over again. (This may be frustrating to a player that invested all those points at character creation- but it is on you as the ST to make sure they have opportunities to use those dots and on them as a player to think cleverly.)

Starting the tale off with defending their innocence is actually a very engaging questline. It effectively sets the stage for the political powerhouses. It lets new players know there are rules- and those in power are watching. It also sets the consequences for failure. Understand that the Camarilla probably isnt going to outright kill the coterie if they fail- always make the punishment just harsh and grueling enough to make final death feel like a mercy. Failure isn’t the end of the story.

For new players- I would be lenient with the time it takes for them to find evidence. But within reason. Think like your Prince and Seneschal. Do you really want this coterie running around for a full week, unsupervised, making more messes? No. You don’t. (You might wanna send an npc with them to watch and keep em out of trouble. Your npc is also able to vouch for them.)

This story lends itself to be a Camarilla Chronicle very easily. You can go Anarch, but an Anarch leader suddenly vanishing and blaming the newbies is much more quickly going to end with blood spilled. Thank your local sweeper.

> Option 2: Containment Breach Blacksite 24 (Loresheet on page 264) was temporarily occupied by Operation Firstlight. It has now been transformed into a medical research facility. While most kindred of Chicago know of Blacksite 24, they have zero clue what happens inside other than bad news for them- the less they know the safer they are. The chronicle opens with a car crash. The captured soon-to-be coterie was in transit to this feared medical facility. The crash did kill the driver and the agent in charge of transporting them. The crash did not fully break their restraints, but it did enough damage that first responders are freaking out. They are all at hunger 3. The chronicle is a hunt. The coterie should have some knowledge of what had happened to them and how lucky they are to have escaped. Operatives are already on their way to recapture them. They must hide in this city- and do their best to survive and stay out of sight.

The point of this story is to invoke dread. I highly recommend one player either being a thin-blood (or an npc) with the Daydrinker merit, or a player to have a ghoul. If they decide to not have a daywatch, they increase their chance of being found.

This story also sets up a feeling of desperation. They would be willing to take shelter from anyone- anyone. Eventually the other kindred will catch on that these guys are on the run from something. Any sane kindred would toss them out to protect themselves. A compassionate kindred who takes them in will suffer the final death as a compassionate fool- or join them in captivity. 

This story lends itself to be an Anarch Chronicle much more easily. This is the time the Camarilla will likely be a bit more paranoid and bloody. While they might not outright kill the coterie- they will send them somewhere that is a death trap. They wont dirty their hands with this. After all, you do not want any evidence to fall into the hands of the SI if you hired the hit.

This story is ideal for newbies without background merits. No allies, no influence, no herd. Let them take more mythic merits such as bloodhound and unbondable (Consider finding some from V20 too! There are some really awesome supernatural merits!). These powers would certainly be more fascinating for a medical team to study- not how many instagram followers they have. This kind of story also lets your players feel more powerful- but out of the loop. It lends itself to them forging alliances and getting caught in one-sided favors a lot more quickly. 

The challenging aspect of this story is that is starts with a masquerade breach. New players may not know how to handle such a blatant breach and thats okay. I would let the crash slide- and the Camarilla in the background handles it. Breaches after the crash need to be handled with proper consequences. 

> Option 3: New Blood This is what my storyteller did to me and my first time players (and its also very close to the plot of CoNY). We were shovelheads. Embraced to make a huge mess for the Camarilla and die quick deaths. We were all thin-bloods. The last thing the pcs remember is the sweet rush of ecstasy washing over them, before clawing out of the earth and driven mad by an insatiable hunger. The thrill of the hunt, and the sweet, warm blood on their tongue, nothing was going to be better. All three will awake next to each other, surrounded by the corpses they drank dry in their frenzy. What a way to play the name game! The players have three nights were they figure out their new condition or coverup their tracks (if they think to do it). They contend with their hunger and hatred of sunlight, wrestle with accidentally drinking their family member dry. After three nights, the Scourge comes knocking. Rather than outright killed, they are dragged to Elysium. For some reason, they are adopted by an upstanding member of the Camarilla- or the Prince orders a political rival care for them (hoping they fail). The players are the errand childer of this kindred, and slowly they figure out what they have been gathering through all these errands....

This one lets the characters all have the moments where they discover their disciplines and powers- and bestial tendencies. It naturally flows to allow players to slowly discover the rules and mechanics as well. All players must play fledglings for this tale. 

This story is much more a personal tale than a political one. Eventually politics makes its way in...but it does not have to be a focus. 

This story has less of a hook and more of a “Figure it Out” survival mode until the errands begin. The story is how the character’s react to their condition. It very quickly lends itself to a narrative of finding your own path in the night, rather than mindlessly obeying.

So here are a few questions that I ask myself when crafting a chronicle story:

1. What kind of story do you want to tell? Not asking for a plot hook, I’m asking for a general concept. Is it a tale of good triumphing over evil? (Not necessarily a wrong answer, but if you wanna play good guys...vampire is not the best game for that). Is this a chase? Is this a race against time? 

2. How do you want your story to make your players feel? Do you want to tell a story that invokes as much dread as possible in your players? Do you want them to feel ultra powerful? Vampire is both a power fantasy and a dread inducing game- it can do both. 

3. If you don’t know what kind of story you want to tell, switch gears to worldbuilding. CbN has so many NPCs with the rumors already written for you. Its your setting, perhaps switch two rumors around with prominent NPCs. Decide which ones are true in your setting- Maybe Primogen Annabell did kill her predecessor. Perhaps the Lasombra are attempting to infiltrate the Camarilla as everyone fears- but no one is able to prove it or stop it. Deciding what is true, false, and undetermined usually blossoms into hooks and stories worth investigating.

4. What is a historical event of the city that the Vampires would have endured/ scars would have remained? For example, in my chronicle set in Richmond, the tale of the Richmond Vampire is true. Depending on who you ask, it is the Camarilla’s best or sloppiest cover up. Have the chronicle coincide with the events and the coterie live through them. No one said this must take place in 2021- you can do 2015, 2008, -hell go back the 1990s. Its actually super fun if you set your chronicle in the 90s and your Malkavian is using phrases from 2020.

5. One of my things I do when writing scenes and moments is play Dread by myself. Dread is a role playing game played with jenga. There are no dice rolls, if you want to attempt something, you have to pull pieces from the tower. If the tower falls, you die. If there is a moment where I really really really dont want to pull from the tower, though the reward for succeeding is so so sweet- I keep the moment. If its really easy to shrug and go eh, I can live without performing that action- go back and rewrite it. If you have no incentive to pull from the tower, why would they?

6. Examine your player’s desires and ambitions- and do not neglect them in your chronicle. The plot wont magically allow all of them to achieve their ambitions. However, provide opportunities for them through the plot. Its on them to strive for what their character wants- its on you to make them struggle but have the path to get there. For example, if a player wants to become a Baron, provide a political opening. Perhaps then by announcing their power, they have made a bigger name for themselves and it has become harder to hide. Perhaps by doing this, the kindred they owe a favor is suddenly much more vocal about it. 

Here are some suggestions for handling new players:

> You are going to have to handhold them through some things. New players to vtm won’t be able to see the cascading political web and how the consequences of their actions will ripple into waves. I like to use Wits+Insight and call it Common Sense. Common Sense was a merit in V20- and damn is it WONDERFUL. All they need is just 1 success (they can take half) to have you explain how whatever plan they just thought of is actually a TERRIBLE idea. 

> Do your RPG consent list. Know what is safe to discuss and what is off the table. I highly recommend utilizing something my Storyteller used for my first chronicle, and subsequently I use for all my ttrpgs now: Invoking the Veil. The metaphor is that you are slowly lessening the intensity of a scene- as if raising the opacity or looking through layers of fabric. Eventually, there is too much fabric and you can no longer see the scene. If something is too intense, the ST or the player may announce they are invoking the veil. Reduce the scene by lowering music, speaking in third person, or avoiding heavy descriptors. You can reduce it further to just dice rolls. Role play stops, and the consequences of the scene are solely dictated by the dice. Or fade to black. If a player is repeatedly fading to black on something- ask to talk to them about it. Clearly something is too intense and they are not having as much fun as they can. Debriefing after a session is also a good idea. Do something silly! Share and check all the memes in the discord chat. Its important to make sure you and your players know that at the end of the night- its all just a game.

> I find the sabbat and new players don’t tend to mix well. You may absolutely still use the sabbat in your chronicle! But the dogma and philosophical ideals of the sabbat can be offputting and downright upsetting to a first time player. You may absolutely build to it- that’s what I did to my players. And in the moment of the truth, they chose to cling to humanity. 

> The taking half mechanic is your friend! V5 says players may announce how many dice they are rolling- and if the dividend is greater than the DC- they auto succeed. This streamlines play. Of course, you as the Storyteller may say this is a roll they are not allowed to take half on. Usually these are contested rolls (combat).

> The three turns and out rule keeps combat intense but not too lengthy. It actually streamlines encounters super super well. 

> My ST used a phrase, “The quickest way to kill Cthulhu is to give it a healthbar.” If Methuselahs and Elders are involved in your game- avoid giving them stat blocks. This cultivates a conflict that new players must find a way to overcome without brute force combat. It makes them think critically and defy these super old antagonists through narrative means. This also gets the notion out of your and their heads, “if they die, its over.” Its never that easy. Never. 

#steph answers questions #thanks for asking! #vtm #vampire the masquerade #vamp tag #storyteller vibes #ghostravens

[osdd-1bitch]

#1: Emily's introduction:

Hallo, I guess I’ll be the first to do a little entry thing! The Computer explained it to me, and said it wanted some basic things first, so I suppose I’ll start with an introduction.

Salut! I’m a member of the Astral Assembly-or well, that’s our name for now..? It’s, well, pending approval and there’s some others that have been suggested. I personally like that one the best though.

My name is Emily! I’m a physical caretaker, though I do occasionally help out with the kids. I’m and I’m in my mid to late 20s, a cassgender girl (she/they), and a semi-frequent fronter. Though it’s all pretty fluid nowadays…

My favorite color is green, my favorite animal is butterflies, and I really like cake when it’s cold. I love drinking tea, mystery and nonfiction novels, and hiking! I’m arospec, and sapphic.

I used to be a part of the Anonymous Enclave area, and avoided that layer shift, as well as the one with the JM, so I’ve stuck with the main fronting group for a good while. My best friend is Cookie, a gatekeeper, but she is a little hard to reach right now.

I know the most French out of all of us-though that isn’t much anyways-and really love doing my/our nails! I do the showering stuff, telling people to eat, that sort of stuff! I’m not anyone super important internally, though I was an ‘honorary gatekeeper’ for a while and helped Cookie, and that was really fun. Lanuages, like I said before, are also really really fun to learn!

I mostly hang out with Sia, Mia, and Nia when I can get down there, other than Cookie of course. I’m probably closest to Mia, though all of them are nice. Nia’s just a bit loud and Sia and I just don’t have much in common.

I’m probably the most human of the system(s) to be honest. Well there are technically humanish people around, they are mostly varying levels of humanity. Claws, teeth, extra appendages, the works. I’m just a normal human person though, but I don't mind. It probably has to do with my role, well I don’t really look like the body I certainly have more in common with it than most. And since my whole job is taking care of it, it’s pretty useful to be comfortable in it, helps me stay intune and not tap out and miss something.

About the new era, I..don’t know 2co that well, I’ll be perfectly honest, but I know ACI pretty well. 2co seems like a good match to balance it out, so I hope they’ll do well working together! Things are looking up, though it's going to be a rocky road for a while. Mmm...rocky road ice cream...

I live in a sort of secluded area of the headspace, in the Cosmic Sea. It’s this weirdly moving sort of galaxy with floating islands. Mine’s a tad lower than the rest and in a place without many of the brighter stars, mostly blue ones and dwarves.

Mine’s mostly woods, with my house! Basement, kitchen, it’s pretty quaint and cozy if I do say so myself.

The woods are pretty, and the seasons change randomly. Rivers, and birds, that sort of thing!

Or well, the general ambiance of birds, since i never actually see any, so it might just be for the aesthetic.

The Cosmic Sea is part of the Plane, but it’s only connected through a big tunnel that used to be a hub, but it’s not really very active now...it’s sort of strange to walk through that place, it’s gigantic. There’s rooms full of papers, big signboards, chairs, and doors upon doors. Most are locked nowadays. I hope it comes back into use someday, I know it’d be a great help with comms, but we need to get better at that to even start using that place again...ugh.

But it’s a very scenic trip! I walk everywhere, which most people don’t bother, but it really is beautiful. I love taking in the time to appreciate it whenever I can!

I tend to follow my routes though, so i can't really tell you much about the furtherest corners of our headspace or anything like that.

I don’t front for fun much, most of the time there’s something that's been neglected that I should take care of. But I really don’t mind, I do love my role and I don’t blame anyone. Mental health is screwy, and quite a few members are pretty clueless about how the body works.

I’ve been outside of a specific subsystem, cluster, or layer for a long time now. I suspect I’ll probably keep free floating in the future. I’m unsure why there hasn’t been any other physical caretakers, since there are repeats of every other role (I think) but things are weird.

I don’t have very many outside hobbies. I would love a cat or pet, and feed some strays. Otherwise, I’m pretty easy to miss.

Some random questions I found looking around:

-Have you ever had a nickname? What is it?

Mia calls me Emmie, and a few people call me Em or just M. The last one has caused some confusion since my name starts with a E, not a M.

-What is your favorite book? Least favorite?

My favorite genre is poetry, though I love older classical books! Sheil Silverstiens collections, Jane Austen, Red Fox, Call of The Wild and White Fang, lyrical works or written in older styles. The flow of it is just beautiful and so rich with ambiance! I don’t think I’d be able to choose a specific one….

But unrelated to those two genres, I read the works of a certain mystery/horror novelist who was wonderful in crafting pretty interesting characters and dynamics of trauma and such, and doing nothing with it. Oh, and there was an incredibly frustrating lack of action, by action I mean plot important things. The mysteries had little to no build up, and if answers were given it was randomly at the end of the book if not at all. Oh, and the cleverly set up problems and things for the characters to deal with magically vanish at the end. Like, no.

It was incredibly frustrating to read, but I fell in love with the characters and the world. They deserved better plots though, it was painful.

-Favorite food?

Oatmeal cookies and tea! I could eat them forever, way better than chocolate chip. It’s not really a meal, but it’s certainly healthier than other types of cookies.

I do really love cake though, but refrigerated! Broccoli is delicious too. Ice cream is a guilty pleasure.

-Least favorite food?

Oatmeal by itself, red meat, and carrots are all gross. I don’t like most candies, they taste of chemicals or are too sweet for me.

-If you were stuck on a deserted island, what one thing would you take with you, and why?

Would a survival kit count as one thing?

If not, one of those person-sized books about survival and animals and stuff you’d drag out of the library at age 3 and read for hours.

I can make my own fun, but well I am a physical caretaker, I certainly don’t know enough survival skills to live on an island for who knows how long!

-If you were a superhero, what power would you have?

Some sort of mind control, since it’s the easiest and most nonviolent way to keep the peace. If I can just suggest people to stop doing stuff, no need for punches. It’d also be way more efficient and I would have more time to myself, and could just mindwipe anyone who saw my real identity.

Though, that’s if I needed one. I could just brainwash people well casually hiding somewhere, rather than have to learn what spandex feels like. Seriously, I understand the want for a good aesthetic, but some of these costumes are shamefully ugly...I wouldn’t be caught dead wearing outside underwear in public, thank you very much

That’s all for now I guess. Next time I want to call up some of the other caretakers and do a bit of an introspective, maybe I can get a hold of Cookie too..

And probably find Scatter, we have a bit in common in our exclusion from the normal laws of syssics (system physics)!

I've actually posted here once or twice if you would believe that! Maybe I'll sign some posts? Either way, see you!

Emily (9/11/21)

(Ooh, bit of an ominous date.... Well, cant be helped I guess.)

(Partially transcripted by Liam)

#+emily #+1 #+about #+relation #+quirks #+role #+introduction #personal #mental files #txt

[oathkeeper-of-tarth]

2020 SU Fic Sampler - WIP Showcase

So in my continued attempts at distraction, I trawled through my SU fanfic folders, looked at the ol’ endless WIP pile. Figured I’d do a little roundup of some that are in something resembling a decent state. Maybe even see where interest lies and all that, get some attention and validation, you know, all that good stuff one craves. Of course, there’s loads more than this, and I might one day post some things I wrote but never quite managed to finish up, or that got super jossed in ways I couldn’t get myself to work around.

Now, in no particular order, here’s 8 draft snippets totaling almost 6000 words - not very polished, obviously, some quite rough around the edges, some long, some short, some that work better without context than others. But here they are anyway, with an utterly predictable array of focal characters. Any missing segments or my asides/notes in the text are [written like this], because I usually write very non-linearly. Hope you all like mood whiplash! 

P.S. I live for comments.

Like Talking To A Wall, aka Bismuth making friends with the wall, statue, and floor Gems. Early precursors to radicalisation and “I would have liberated everyone”, perhaps. Started as one of my first reactions to the Diamond Days episodes.

“Hey, thanks for listening.”

“Anytime. You’re lucky I’m so supportive,” Mica piped up from up on her arch.

Bismuth laughed. Bittersweet. “Yeah. Yeah, I guess I am.”

Then, with a surprisingly gentle hand pressed to the carvings she’d been so careful about, she added a soft: “I’ll miss you.”

“Chin up! It’s gonna be a lovely off-planet adventure for you,” Granite rumbled from just above her head. “A brand new colony! Think of the sights!”

“You can tell us all about it when we see you again.”

Bismuth leaned back, pressing her whole back against the wall, reluctant to leave, even if a snooty shift supervisor was bound to come around and chase her off soon. “Yeah, I’ll make sure to do that.”

They all knew very well that, as always, when the building was done, it was goodbye. The chances of there being a need for repairs or remodelling - and the exact same bismuths being brought in to do them - were incredibly slim.

But pretending was nice, sometimes.

-

Hey, Steven, think I could get a moment before we leave? I won’t be long.

-

They were right where she’d left them, and the years had done very little to change them. A bit of a patina there, some dust, the tiniest bit of wear on sharper corners.

“Bismuth?” Several familiar voices cried out to her in shocked recognition.

She knew she must look a sight - battle-ready and battle-worn, but armour still gleaming, and with a bearing of one who had been through much and was always ready for more. She felt her back had never been so proud and straight, her shoulders so resolutely set.

“I think,” Bismuth grinned, “you’re gonna start seeing changes around these parts.”

---

One for that favourite Pearletariat/Pearl Solidarity fic sub-genre of mine: Clever Pearls Cleverly Getting Around Badly Worded Orders. A bit of an origin for an as-of-yet unnamed pearl OC, because I sure don’t have enough of those!

In the untold thousands of years of Homeworld and Gemkind, and the hundreds of thousands of commands given to hundreds of thousands of pearls, nobody ever thought to Order a pearl not to think. That would imply a they mattered at all, and who would ever put stock in a pearl’s thoughts? Most Gems weren’t sure pearls could think, anyway. I mean, if they could, all that standing around would be intolerable, wouldn’t it? And imagine not being able to say no to anything, even crushing your own gem - shards, at least I’m not a pearl!

They were, occasionally, when dealing with an owner’s important, private, confidential business, Ordered to forget, or, a bit less esoterically, Ordered never to tell.

And [OWNER] has always been all too eager with the Orders. As if she went to bizarre lengths in her thinking that pearl couldn’t - or wouldn’t? - do anything upon merely being told, let alone by herself. Every little thing, from sweeping up the shards of a broken decorative plate to taking down the minutes of an important meeting [OWNER] was presiding over - (im)pressed upon pearl with the crushing weight of an Order.

But she could still think.

Even when Ordered to wait by the door, freezing her limbs and anchoring her legs to the ground with all the force of a starship mooring mechanism. Even when Ordered into silence for days and planetary rotations on end because [OWNER] had wanted to read an important document without being disturbed and it simply didn’t occur to her to lift it when she was done.

In the wake of the Rebellion and the Renegade Pearl, it only gets worse, and soon enough pearl can barely remember the last time a single movement she made was voluntary.

---

SU Future-era Bismuth and Steven convo I scribbled down in between some of these recent eps - after Growing Pains in particular I think - because Bismuth is the absolute pep talk queen.

“You already said you were sorry for trying to kill me in the Forge, and really, it’s okay, it was all a misunderstanding. Besides, it’s more than a lot of people have done!”

Bismuth blinked at the pinkish sheen around Steven’s cheeks, around the downturned brows - strange trick of the light, that. “Steven, come on. Just listen to me for a minute.”

“Okay,” Steven sighed, and leaned against the railing Bismuth had fixed just that morning.

“Point is, for me, the war had never ended. It wasn’t only yesterday, it was today. It was over for everyone, it seemed, except for me. And getting over that, getting used to that, really seeing that as the truth, not living every day buzzed up with that anticipation of the next battle, just waiting for Homeworld to come down hard on us with whatever new horror they’d come up with… that took a while. And it took help.”

[sudden apparent non-sequitur but It’s An Allegory, Steven.]

“When you make a sword, you can’t make it rigid and unyielding. You can’t just temper it into toughness and hardness and make it unbreakable. It needs to have some give in order to be durable, it needs to be able to bend so as not to shatter on impact. And sure, maybe the first parry or strike wouldn’t be the one to do it, but the tenth, the hundreth, the thousandth? Any time you might just find yourself holding on to a hilt with the jagged remnants of everything, and shards scattered on the ground. And if you’re very lucky, that’ll happen during friendly sparring, not in the heat of battle.”

Steven shrugged without response, and seemed to be shrugging off all the words as well. Back to the direct approach it was, then.

“Now you, Steven,” that at least got a bit more attention, “Sure, you can brawl with the best of ‘em, and you put that gem to damn good use. You’ve got great technique drilled in, too - I’d expect nothing less from one of Pearl’s students. But that’s not how you won, in the end, is it? You never won because you were tough, or strong. You have a diamond in you but you’re not hard at all. Well, except on yourself.”

“In the end all of this was possible because you were soft. Just malleable and pliable enough when it was needed. And that takes guts.”

“Hey, I’m just saying,” Bismuth put a hand on his shoulder, and even with all the very human growing he’d done, he still seemed to almost disappear in it. “You put yourself out there for others… maybe it’s about time you let them help you.”

---

The next chapter of the His Dark Materials/Daemons AU which I am sooooo painfully late with it’s not even funny anymore. Already posted some excerpts [here] and [here].

“She’s been... away on business, but we’ve sent a zeppelin for her and she’s well on her way back. Hopefully.”

“You have a zeppelin?” Rose was rapidly failing in all her efforts to keep her voice down. 

“Of a sort. We, er, we... stole it.”

“Stole-!”

“Yes, well, stole might be a strong word,” Pearl tapped a finger against her chin. “You see, there was a small decommissioned postal craft left below the southern mail station aërodock that nobody would ever miss, all I had to do was fix it up a bit and-”

Rose blinked. “You fixed a decommissioned zeppelin.”

Pearl waved a hand almost casually. “I had some help, but yes. Svalbard, understandably, is hard to reach with other means of transport, and Bismuth needed to be able to go back and forth.”

“You,” Rose began, awed, “are utterly wasted on bringing me my slippers, I’ll tell you that.”

“Well then, maybe,” Pearl blushed, but there was nothing hesitant about her smirk and the strikingly proud tilt of her head, “maybe you could take them off with a bit more care than kicking them halfway across the room and sending them off under the cabinets and- and then I wouldn’t need to do that at all. And I could fix all the zeppelins in the world.”

-

[more from the super secret backroom rebellion meeting]

“They’re with the Consistorial Court of Discipline, no doubt. Always on the lookout for,” Bismuth grimaced, “heretics. A lot falls under that. A lot of good excuses to snatch someone off the street and do who knows what to them. And they’ve been funneling people there, people vanished by the CCD. Not lacking in test subjects lately.”

“How did you get this? Where?” It was Sapphire, this time. Ruby seemed overwhelmed, and sat clutching her hand desperately as the tiny frog and hare both whispered something to her.

“We traced the funding for all this. It was difficult and deliberately obfuscated, but we managed. A facility like this, an entire operation, cost a pretty amount, you’d assume - and you’d be right. It had to come from somewhere. And whoever was paying for it was likely to want to know what was being done with their investment.”

“So we followed the trail. And it turned out I was… ideally positioned to… to, erm, procure what evidence there was to be found. Because, well...” Pearl trailed off, and lifted one of the stolen report sheets for all to see.

It was as clear as day, the family crest right above the astronomical amount being granted. Four diamonds, neatly arranged.

Neshu’s ears were flat against his mane, and Rose found herself wishing the ground would simply open up and swallow both her and him and the chair that she sat on and he’d tried to duck under.

Bismuth spoke up, grim, every drop of earlier exuberance gone from her. “When the Diamonds look out from the windows of their mansion, they don’t see people. They see tools, toys, and weapons. Nothing else.” She sounded more tired than angry. “It’s just what they’ve always been doing, but writ large.”

---

And then, of course, the Longass PearlRose Fixit because I hate the gag order but at the same time want it gone… slowly and organically. Alternating Rose and Pearl POVs spanning throughout the rebellion era, all sorts of flashbacks and Imagining Things included. At one point they end up attempting to essentially jailbreak Pearl, because Pearl is, as we all know, absolutely the most hardcore. Also thank you SU Movie for confirming all the awful Alexa-flavour fanon/headcanons and giving me an excuse to dive into a bunch of Gems-as-AI tropey stuff, on top of everything. [another previously posted fragment here]

“I don’t want to. I never want to do that to you again.” She stops, takes a breath, reconsiders. “And I know it’s a lot to ask of you, the trust I just… trampled over. So I want to make sure that it’s not just that, you trusting me not to make the same mistake again, with no reassurance anywhere. I—I want to not be able to. Nobody should be able to do that to you.”

“Nobody should be able to do that to anyone,” Pearl corrects readily.

“You’re right,” Rose smiles, only a bit wry, “as always. My brilliant, brilliant Pearl. What would I do without you?”

“Never get back to the point you were trying to make, I imagine,” Pearl quips with something resembling sauciness, and Rose feels at least some of the weight starting to lift off her.

“Right,” Rose agrees, chastised, and tries to focus. “I just… I’m not sure how, or what I need to do at all. It’s not like there’s much precedent – ownerless pearls are unheard of. Even when their owners get shattered, it’s only ever temporary, and, with such high demand, very brief.”

Pearl nods in agreement, and hums. “Luckily, we’ve seen plenty of unheard of and unspeakable things here.”

[echoes of Scabbard convo]

“I want to know, I want to be certain, that you’re here because you want to be.” 

“So do I.” Pearl responds quietly, letting their fingers entwine.

  [Giving an order not to follow orders doesn’t work, failsafes exist. Then they try a sort of ownership transfer thing, and try to make the new owner Pearl. It doesn’t register, “invalid transfer target”, even when Pearl tries to hack it - some odd gem tool that scans and pokes at her gem - she gets all bummed out because she can’t even reprogram a very basic and modifiable handheld tool/device to recognise a pearl as an actual gem and person. What chance does she have against hearts and minds and an entire ingrained culture of an entire sprawling empire?

“You changed my mind,” says Rose all softly and earnestly.

Have I really? Pearl asks herself but doesn’t let it escape out loud. Still. Step by small step, she admits to herself. Incremental, slow, but persistent work. She can do that. Even as down on herself as she is, she can do that.]

“The… the override.” Pearl breathes out suddenly.

“What?”

“The administrative override - you, or, well... Pink Diamond should be able to trigger it, even without a Rejuvenator. We shouldn’t…” Pearl looks strangely scared now, swallowing small gulps before pushing onwards, hands trembling and fingers knotting together, “w-we shouldn’t need a full reset, really, but. But we can try modifying the owner identification...”

Having to… turn into Pink again (turn back into yourself, you mean, a small voice whispers, who are you trying to fool) doesn’t sit well with her, of course, but. Get a hold of yourself, Pearl certainly has it so much worse in this scenario.

[more here about how they both need to kind of “revert” a bit to try this and it sucks, because no! unpleasant poking of holes in the elaborate fantasy! For the greater good, but still.]

And oh, Pearl looks just about ready to either cry with some strange terror Rose has never seen her display, or dissipate her form on the spot - the small dam of coldly throwing around terms like administrative override activation and owner identification variable providing just enough distance for her to carry on.

“It shouldn’t be too risky if we’re… if you’re careful.”

[Pearl trusts her with everything, her literal entire self - with this thing that is such a blatant violation of her being and her person, that she now wants to turn against itself, using one of the most humiliatingly clearly objectifying aspects of her status as an instrument of her liberation. It is all A Lot.]

Rose remembers, also, with a sting, the way she grumbled and sulked over the gaping pit of guilt in her stomach and refused to even look at the glowing, floating shell Blue was so insistently pushing her towards. She wanted her Pearl back, not whatever White and the others had decided to foist upon her now. Not a pale replacement, nothing they deemed suitable.

-

“Please state preferred customisation options.”

“Come on, Pink,” Blue urges, softly but mercilessly as ever, large hands enveloping Pink almost whole from where they’re planted on her shoulders, “White had her specially made, just for you! And we helped as well - only the best for our Pink. Now it’s up to you to put your finishing touches, as is proper-”

“What for? You’ll just take her away when you feel like it anyway,” she grumbles into her arms, curling up on the floor and resolutely refusing to look even as the glow spreads from the corner of her eye, insistent.

Just as insistent as the awfully familiar little voice. “Please state preferred customisation options.”

“I. Don’t. Care!” But now with a newly noticeable, if strained restraint - not, like her usual, punctuated with a slam of her fist on the floor tiles, perfectly shiny and pink. No, she couldn’t- do something like that again-

“Default setting selected. Please stand by.”

Yellow scoffs and moves to leave. “Come on, Blue. No point to us wasting our time being here if she’s just going to throw one of her tantrums.”

But Blue refuses to leave it at that, and makes sure to cut with parting words, before slinking through the large pink doorway. “I am very disappointed in you, Pink. To act like that, and with White personally making sure you got such a lovely gift even after everything...”

“Waste of good nacre, if you ask me,” Yellow muses from somewhere up above. “At least try not to break this one.” 

The glow intensifies with a hum, and Pink screws her eyes shut and pretends not to see or hear anything. 

By the time she opens them again, the others are gone.

But then there is another presence at her side, hovering just behind, as is proper court protocol. The shuffling of tiny, soft slippers on the polished stone - weren’t pearls supposed to be endlessly, effortlessly quiet?

“Leave me alone,” she preempts quietly. The shuffling moves away.

-

“Please identify yourself.”

Calmly, now, calmly but firmly, just like we planned it. Don’t mess this up now. She’s counting on you. She trusts you. “Pearl.”

“Please state preferred customisation options.”

They’ve discussed this too, of course - extensive (over)preparation and planning down to minutiae is Pearl’s go-to at the best of times, and something she clutches at for comfort at the worst of times. And she’s always, to a sometimes comical extent, despised that ridiculous dress. To a wonderful extent, too, all things considered.

“Revert to last implemented appearance.”

“Settings selected. Please stand by.”

[Of course this doesn’t work because all it does is change the $username$ variable, not the actual identity of the person imprinted: it’s still Rose/Pink, she’s just nicknamed “Pearl” now, but she can still give orders and everything.]

[evolves into Pearl literally hacking herself… the most hardcore of modders]

---

Pearl Playing the Field aka “why not hyper-analyze that one brief shot of the notes and phone numbers in Pearl’s gem and write 9 meet-cutes”. Pearl goes out to “find herself”. Whatever that is supposed to mean. Supposed to be set pre-ASPR, but also extends past it. Ended up with some Bispearl in it too because I am predictable and can absolutely not help myself.

“Your hair is wonderful!” She feels like she almost has to shout to be heard over the din of the bar’s ill-chosen soundtrack, and she doesn’t appreciate it. Definitely not one of her favourite places she’s decided to visit recently. And the ventilation is atrocious.

But still, she’s come all this way, so she may as well make the best of it. And while the preoccupation with hairstyles during first meetings seems like a bit of an odd running theme (can it really be termed a running theme, though, if it’s happened all of two times?), it’s certainly worked in the past (recent, very recent, and hardly bursting with relevant instances, Pearl!). Oh, and this particular one is just too fascinating. Approaching a work of art, Pearl would dare say. Especially, well. Especially when paired with the lovely eyes and striking jawline and strong neck it seems to deliberately be drawing attention to.

Pearl leans on the bar, in the bit of space the woman happily makes for her, and tries to look confident and well-informed, but not smug, no, never smug. “I know... about the, uh, goop, of course. I know how one accomplishes this.”

The woman gives a bemused smile. “Thanks! Not too shabby yourself.” She leans in closer. “I'm actually in school for it.”

“School?” Pearl casts desperately back to what she's heard from Steven and Greg's often hasty instruction. That was for educating human children, wasn't it? She'd put one together for Steven that one time, with desks and a blackboard… and Connie attended one regularly...

“Yeah, kind of a late game career change.” Pearl nods along as she realises - or, rather, remembers - she is absolutely terrible at gauging human ages. “But I thought... after almost 30 years in accounting and not going anywhere I wanted to be going... it’s not like we have all the time in the world, right? So I figured, why not? Go for something I'm actually invested in and that I've always wanted to do, y'know?”

“Oh. Oh yes, yes I do.” And for once, she really does. Well, not the time-related bit, perhaps, but the very particular delight of getting to pursue one’s genuine interests after a long while of being denied? Absolutely. “I’ve done something of the sort myself, actually. Go for it! As they, uh, say.”

The dramatic gesture of almost punching the air with a closed triumphant/defiant fist might have been a tad over the top, but it wins her a smile that doesn’t seem unkind. The woman winks and tips her glass at Pearl, then finishes her drink - something sweet-smelling and almost as colourful as her hair.

“I had a classmate do this one for me, and I did hers after.” Pearl is nodding along again, leaning in to hear better as the woman’s voice dips lower. “I kind of like to experiment, push the limits, go wild with it. Hey. You interested? Promise I won’t go too wild on you.”

Pearl's mind goes blank there for a moment. The woman is… very close, and there are unignorable implications unrelated to hair styling so obvious here even she is picking up on them without issue, and the music hasn’t gotten any quieter. Interested in what, exactly, she wants to ask, but she came here for wild new experiences and exciting novelty, didn’t she, so instead comes out with a rather strangled-sounding: “Eughhhhh...uhhh.... Ye...s?”

The woman’s expression goes serious. “Hey, come on, we don’t have to do anything you’re not comfortable with.”

---

Forge Showdown AU - aka in a twist of fate Bismuth poofs Rose during their confrontation and revelations happen that change the course of… well, pretty much everything - one of a bunch of AUs where the PD reveal happens earlier and under different circumstances (I had an idea of doing a 5+1 of those at one point).

The glow of the lava coloured the quickly dissipating smoke more orange-red than pale pink, and Bismuth stared numbly at where their revered leader, Rose Quartz herself, had been standing mere moments ago. She’d lashed out, true, but she hadn’t really been expecting the clumsy blow - more of a warning, or underlining a point in their continued argument-turned-fight - to land. In all their many sparring sessions, Rose had never succumbed to something like that, would have never so much as let it brush against her. But she’d been- frozen, distracted… by what? 

There, scraping softly against the ground as it rolled with leftover momentum...

That was not a rose quartz gem.

Bismuth raked her mind feverishly, thought back through the last few, oddly blurred seconds.

“We’re not using this, Bismuth! It’d make us just as bad as them!”

“No! You’re the one who’s as bad as them- look at you, lording over all of us, thinking it’s your right to command me, order me around, like you’re, what, my diamond?”

It… it had to be some kind of imposter, or spy. Right? Some kind of… awful Homeworld plan, trying to tear the Rebellion apart from the inside. Where was Rose, then? The real one? Captured? Being interrogated somewhere, her whereabouts kept strictly secret to minimise the chance of rescue? Shattered? Impossible, they’d never hear the end of the victorious crowing.

When could it have happened? The last few battles and meetings had been nothing out of the ordinary, and Bismuth couldn’t think of anything odd or off about Rose recently at all. Not a single hint or sign that anything was amiss. Not a single misstep. Homeworld would have trained and conditioned its agents well, but Rose- Rose was singular, and utterly one-of-a-kind, and how could they possibly capture all of it so perfectly-

Bismuth startled out of her thoughts as the beginnings of light seemed to gather in the core of the gem, and all but threw herself onto it, encasing it in a bubble.

Rose was rather special, wasn’t she? And not just in what she said or what she did or how she behaved or what she led and encouraged them to do, but… 

Her endless array of wondrous powers. Her sheer strength, overpowering ruby fusions and quartz battalions alike almost single-handedly. The healing which Bismuth herself had been on the receiving, lifesaving end of countless times. The way she called upon the organic creatures of the planet to fight for her, fighting in their name. And then, her regular absences. The way she seemed to know exactly what the Homeworld troops were up to - that wasn’t just some kind of tactical brilliance.

She dared to look at the gem again. Its hue was changed some by the bubble, but that was still in no way a rose quartz gem. No, it was an altogether different shape, but a terrifyingly familiar one.

But it made no sense!

Bismuth ran a slightly trembling hand down her face.

Pearl. Of course, Pearl would have to know, if anyone. About… whatever this was.

But if this, if she was… her, then Pearl-

Bismuth’s insides twisted in horrible ways as the implications began to flitter through her mind, each one worse than the one before it. There was the old call-and-response ringing in her ears, making her feel disoriented and sick with what had to be the beginnings of anger, could grow into a great fury, leaving her unnecessary breaths ragged: Who do you belong to? Nobody!

But-

Not Pearl, then. At least, not at first. Garnet. Garnet would know, and Garnet could See. They’d get to the bottom of this.

---

A metric ton of rebellion era ficlets, vignettes from my eeeEEeeEEeeEEE Bismuth collection mostly, which I’ve been accumulating since 2016 and have only posted some - Pearl, Rose, Garnet, Bismuth centric, occasionally with my takes on namedropped characters, some of which would now need an update to match actual canon.

Snowflake was there, held in Garnet’s arms. The familiar pattern of white speckles on black skin, the tight silver coils of hair sticking out every which way.

“We got her back. She wanted to see you.”

“Me? And you just listened to her? Are you out of your mind? How can I help? Have you taken her to Rose? If her gem- if she-”

“I’m right here!” Snowflake struggled out of Garnet’s hold, and stood up - wobbly, barely upright, but determined, on those legs that ran circles around Homeworld, and ran interference and messages faster than any Wailing Stone, in a pinch. “And I’m fine!”

“You don’t look fine, Snowy- listen, please just-”

Snowflake walked up to her, not stumbling a single time, and, gritting her teeth, looked right at her. The hairline fractures in her gem were visible from here, and Bismuth couldn’t help a wince. “Snowflake, come on-”

“I didn’t tell them anything.”

Bismuth wanted to clutch her to her chest and scream a thousand things at her, but You don’t have to prove anything to me and I’m proud of you and I’m going to make them pay for ever laying a finger on you all waged a war in her throat.

In the end she just settled on holding her close, very gently, until Garnet left, unheard, and came back with Rose, tears already in abundance.

[Later:] “I never properly thanked you, Garnet. For bringing Snowflake back.”

Garnet shrugged. “It was a group effort.”

-

A familiar voice sounded at the entrance to the Forge. “Now come along, it’s just here. Bismuth? Do you have a moment?”

“You know I always have time for you, Pearl,” she called back, putting her current project away. “What did you nee- oh.”

Bismuth blinked.

“Uh... wow,” was the only thing she could manage as pearl after pearl filed into her Forge, soon taking up most of the space around the anvil in impressively neat rows. “New recruits? A whole bunch of you, too.”

“Yes, well,” Pearl made her way to the front of the group, carefully avoiding brushing against the others on her way. She was fidgeting again, long fingers tangling and untangling rapidly, and that was one sure sign of mounting distress. “Garnet and I had planned out an attack on one of Blue Diamond’s supply lines. There was supposed to be a shipment of weapons coming in today, but it turns out it was… pearls.” 

There was something rather off about Pearl’s tone, too. Bismuth made a note to ask later, and do her best to catch her alone.

“Well, all the better for us. Nice to have you all on board.” Her jovial tone was only slightly forced - the pearls all looked like they clearly needed something resembling friendliness, but their skittishness was palpable. She turned towards a pale green pearl right at the front of the group. “Now, what do I call you?”

There was nothing but mild confusion, vague fear, and general quiet shuffling. “No ideas yet? Don’t worry about it! There’s plenty of time to decide and find something that fits.”

[she does indeed manage to talk to Pearl alone, later]

“What’s the real problem, Pearl? You can’t fool me. I can tell something’s wrong.” 

The rather flimsy front finally crumbled at that.

“I just… we- we took out the citrines they’d sent with the shuttle, and Garnet boosted me up so I could force the hatch open and I did, but then...” Pearl let out a distressed little half-sigh half-sob, one hand gesturing weakly. “They were all looking at me so wide-eyed and...”

She took a moment to at least attempt to collect herself.

“I don’t mind having them here, it’s not that at all. It’s just that… we were standing there, with all these newly-made pearls and… obviously I couldn’t just leave them there, in the middle of nowhere! And after what we did, whoever found them, they’d just have them shattered. Because of me. They were compromised. You’ve heard what they do now, haven’t you?”

“Yeah, I’ve heard. They’re the monsters, Pearl, and it’s not on you. It’s not you doing that to pearls, it’s them.”

“But it is on me! It quite literally is because of me, because of what I did, and continue to do. I made myself visible and played at being important and look what it got us,” Pearl was near tears, a frustrated blue colouring her face, “a handful of runaways and the rest being treated worse than ever.” 

The tears were out in full force after that, and Bismuth put an arm around Pearl’s shaking shoulders. “Hey, hey, none of that.”

“We ended up taking them with us, but it feels like… it feels like I forced them to come here. Is it really any better than what Homeworld does? All I did was say you’re going to be rebels instead of you’re going to serve and they never got a say in anything.”

“Have you asked them?”

“They don’t know what-”

“Hey. Just ask them, okay? Ask them what they want. We can help them either way. Of course I’d love them to stay. But it’s not up to me, and if they want to go to wherever it was they were supposed to go- we can do that, too.”

-

[Rose discovers her healing tears in a dramatic fashion - they come up with the idea to make the fountain - and thanks to Save the Light we have a pretty good idea of who lovingly made all those statues]

She gently wiped away some of the chiselling dust with the flat of her thumb, just like a tear. A magnificent, healing, life-giving tear.

This was familiar work. But with none of the endless chafing, none of the hated reminders of her former station - Bismuth couldn’t find anything in herself but reverence. And… inspiration. She was a Gem, stars knew she didn’t need rest, breaks, anything of the sort, but still - this pace wasn’t something she’d felt driven to in a long, long while. All day under the burning summer sun, and every night under the light of her own gem. All alone, as the sanctuary took form under her hands.

To get the curls just right, tiny detail by tiny detail, somehow communicate the softness of those cheeks in stone… it took drawing upon the very depths of her well of skill, because how else could she ever hope to capture the likeness of someone as extraordinary as Rose Quartz?

With small, careful movements, she formed the roundness of the lips that could spit fiery words of rebellion, inspire like no other, scowl fiercely in the heat of battle, smile contagiously, bellow out an outrageous fireside guffaw, murmur comforts so softly, kiss…

And then she did it again, and again, and again.

[in the end, Rose is presented with a veritable shrine to herself]

“Rose? Is something wrong? You… don’t like it?”

“No, no, Bismuth, it’s… it’s incredible.” The smile Rose turned on her was as beautiful as anything, but it wasn’t hard to notice it didn’t quite reach her eyes.

#steven universe #oathkeeper writes things #INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: #pearl #bismuth #rose quartz #bispearl #pearlrose #daemon au #the pearletariat #pearl playing the field #those stars of brightest magnitude #let's get down to bismuth #steven universe future #i love pearls just... bury me in a big pile of pearls honestly #endless wip pile #fanfiction #my fic

[klmeri]

(1/4) You have definitely seen such confessions before, so I won't be original with it. *takes a deep breath and shouts at the top of my lungs* Your fanfiction is pure brilliance! \(★ω★)/ Good old quality action, which gets viewers constantly thrilled; detailed minor characters; cleverly crafted and propulsively executed character interactions, be it verbal or subtle body language ones; and, of course, ever present mcspirk — all this together concocts a magic spell that kept me awake at night

(2/4) too many times till the very end of every story. I've read practically all your works (exept the ones labeled with major character death... not gonna lie, I'm a coward :D), starting from canonical to au's (though I'm usually wary of reading au's... moreover, I think I'm probably the only one person in the world who wasn't too fond of TOS episodes with different historical settings and costume changes. And I'm really glad I've decided to take a closer look on yours). My favorites are

(3/4) Winner Takes All, Forget Me Not, The White Horse and the incomparable Younger Than Stars. A couple of questions if you don't mind (no need to answer if you don't want to).1) What's your personal favorite from the author's point of view?2) Don't wanna sound like a little piece of ungrateful reader considering never-ending struggle between real life and hobby... But is there a teeny-tiny chance of you writing a really long novel, like a 5 year mission, where every chapter or 

(4/4) a couple of chapters is a story itself, no matter gen or mature content? I'd gladly sell my soul for a fic like this. Anyway, thanks again for your dedication and commitment! 

Hello there, Anon!  How did you know I needed this nice note today?  You’ve brought a smile to my face.  Thank you!  

It’s always such a pleasure to hear from others who love McSpirk deeply and to learn some joy has been found from my stories for fans of the pairing (and the Triumvirate in general).  Truly, there are many impressive and lovely fanfictions out there to be enjoyed, and I’m happy to contribute as much as I can to the storytelling from my little corner of the fandom.

I truly am smiling right now.  You have been very dedicated to have managed to read most of my works!  I hope there weren’t too many sleepless nights or too much teeth-gnashing over suspense for you to endure.  Also, your favorites comprise some of my most poignant memories of writing!  As difficult to create as some of them were, most left me feeling accomplished by the end.

My personal favorite?  Well, it’s a tie between one gen fic and one McSpirk fic.  My gen favorite is The White Horse.  I love, love, love dark fantasy/supernatural genre and this one was purely self-indulgent!  The lives of the Trio are fairly desolate in this one, and so when they cross paths, the tale becomes a question of ‘can they ever trust each other in this dog-eat-dog world?’ And solve a mystery together.  And put down an evil spirit.  You know, the stuff of legends!  XD  Like I said, purely self-indulgent, all the way down to the minor characters and their hang-ups and the weird magical creatures.

My McSpirk favorite is River Bound.  Again, that element of fantasy inches it ahead of others (like Younger Than Stars - arguably my best work, technically speaking).  Compared to most McSpirk sagas I have written, this story uses the most artistic license with characterizations, especially with Spock being not human or Vulcan, and that might make it seem odd at first... but fundamentally it’s a tale about bonds of love being unshakeable at the core despite any ongoing drama, whether that bond is between siblings or lovers or a parent and child.  I am such a sucker for the Family Is Messy And Still Everything trope, and in my opinion, this is the most fantastical presentation of that.

Hmm, to answer your second question, it simply has not occurred to me before to consider writing a story framed around a 5-year mission, which would be episodic - very much like TOS, I think.  That is definitely a great way to build on character growth, relationships, and so forth!  I can think of a few authors who would do amazingly well at that type of story... but am I one of them?  I don’t know.  This is something for me to think on, and I believe I will.  :)

Again, I just want to say that I genuinely appreciate you taking the time to message me and offer kind words and encouragement.  Thank you so much!

#reader comments #Anonymous

[fenweak]

Top 10 1988 fics?

Ok first of all, i’ve been sitting on this ask, but thank you for this! But buckle up for a lengthy prologue to the answer lmao 

It’s just so weird to be asked to choose which, because at some point, I have loved all of the fics, each for their own merit, you get me? I fell in love with the fandom mostly because the fics here are lovely, and every time a new fic explored another facet of Jonny and Patrick’s relationship getting, it gave me another reason to stay. I read, and reread. I reread enough times that I made a 1988 fic search blog  (Boom, shameless sideblog plug). 

I have also been reading since 2016. That is to say, over time, I have changed, and along with that, my preferences have evolved, my opinions more resolved about a thing or two about the fandom and things tangential to it. I’m rambling, but I guess what I’m trying to say is, I have read fics in this pairing that have become a part of me, and I may not get to mention all of them but I have cherish all of them, truly. LET’S GET ON WITH THE LIST

LAST SEGUE: I have a more extensive fic rec here, which also is in no way exhaustive. It gotta be like that sometimes.

1. Literally everything by jezziejay. No, there isn’t a fic titled literally everything, i’m just a cheater because she’s that awesome. I peer in my bookmarks on ao3, and I have written under Somewhere Only We Know the ff: “NOTE TO FUTURE ME: DO YOURSELF A FAVKR AND READ EVERYTHING THIS LADY WROTE AT LEAST ONCE A YEAR.” And I do, reader. I have an annual jezziejay retrospective. I can probably quote to you entire paragraphs of Strung Out on Heaven’s High (hitting an all-time low). I am forever amazed at how well-crafted the twist was in Make His Brown Eyes Blue.  I just reread Dynamical Systems + its lovely minisequel today. I still dream of future sequels for The Reeducation of Misters Kane and Toews. Since then, jezziejay has published newer fics and we are so so blessed to have them:  the faeries and elves AU, the Love Actually lost in translation AU, her Mr. Wonderful AU, her freaking Murder in the Nile AU which actually convinced me to read more Poirot lol. She balances humor and drama very well and she writes subtly and with deliberateness, that her fics are always perfectly paced for me. If there’s a fic of hers that’s criminally underrated, though, and which you should read right now if you haven’t already, it’s A Better Man, which is one of the best use of OCs I have ever read in fandom ever. Go (re)read it now! Anyway, I can make a top ten fic rec that can be all jezziejay, and it’ll be believable, so let’s just make item one, count for, like, 5 items.

2. a light-handed approach to regulation by hazel. The thing about this fic is, its full appreciation lies in knowing what the popular fandom dynamic is in 1988, and then reading this afterwards. It subverts the trope and the popular pairing dynamic in multiple ways: an omega Captain, the omega being Jonny, having these characters be self-aware of their dynamic and adhere to that dynamic and caring shit all about the conventions attached to it. At the heart of it is still Jonny and Patrick and their love for hockey and I LOVE THAT. I also have gotten into *coughs* friendly discussions whether or not i’m overthinking how brilliant the summary and the title is. Friends, you know who you are haha but I abide by my decision to interpret “a light-handed approach” and its summary “Patrick Kane has soft hands” as somehow referring not only to Patrick Kane’s soft mitts on the ice, but his mindset, his general philosophy into the entire alpha/omega matter and as to him being an alpha to Jonny. WHich IS BRILLIANT because I’m a fan of double entendres and I’m easy to please like that. Also probably read all of hazel’s fics, which are all wonderful and happy reads.

3. Call Me Royal Blue by cupstealer. I was mindblown when this came out, like how dare someone write so cleverly and funny and viscerally and 50k long???  Amazing characterization too! This fic will hold you down and make you feel feelings. 1988 has an abundance of good friends-to-lovers slow burn, so shoutout to my other faves: Orbital Resonance by fourfreedoms and joyfulseeker, The Importance of Swimming in Clear Water by turningterrific, Eyes on the Horizon by heartstrings, Just Maybe by altri_uccelli, Just to Break My Own Fall by Linsky’s, and lean a little to the left by demotu.

4.  In the category of beautifully written and personally relatable: love songs for love songs by boodreau, You and Me of the 10,000 Wars by sahiya, safe to shore  and Chelsea, Chelsea I Believe by empathapathique,  I’m a sucker for fics where the characters, much like in real life, are A Mess, where their emotions or actions go against structured story beats and are pretty much organic. I like stories where the protagonists self-sabotage. I like it when they’re emotionally constipated, or when they hide inside themselves. I like stories where they strive and try to get better because there’s someone getting better for, because that’s the dream, right? Yes I am a drama queen at heart. Special mention to this deleted fic called we were in flames where Patrick and Jonny are long-time friends and lovers since college though Patrick can’t admit it--that story really stuck with me.

5. Here are fics with a touch of supernatural and which I completely adore: A Certainty I Envy by hatrickane, We’ve Waited For the Calling by allthebros, So Lift Those Heavy Eyelids by SimoneCloseau, these are the fables on my street by fahye, and a dainty dish set before the king by mockturtletale. There seriously needs to be more fantasy and supernatural fics in this fandom, because these are amazing and heart-wrenching and the idea of Jonny and Patrick braving and transcending the elements against them? A+

Special mention to my perennial rereads: You Make It Look Good, All Along the Undertow, Same Time, Same Place, love is a contact sport, 22. I may have forgotten many, but these are the fics that came to mind!

#Anonymous #fic rec #1988 #can you tell i wrote this to distract myself from the game lol

[battleshell]

THE POSITIVE & NEGATIVE; Mun & Muse - Meme.

fill out & repost ♥ This meme definitely favors canons more, but I hope OC’s still can make it somehow work with their own lore, and lil’ fandom of friends & mutuals. Multi-Muses pick the muse you are the most invested in atm. tagged by: @dansiere whom im care tagging: extremely informative meme for ppl who have lots of cross-over interactions, i encourage u to steal it from me anyway BUT @sternenteile​ @twelvians​ @stellamris​ @grandtales​

My muse is:   canon / oc / au / canon-divergent / fandomless / complicated

Is your character popular in the fandom? YES / NO. [ he is a very, very minor NPC that i’ve essentially wrested from the game with my grubby hands; Gerson is a merchant NPC found in Waterfall, the third area of the game focused with water themes. he has less than 100 lines of dialogue (but jam-packed full of info) and doesn’t even have an overworld sprite. although noted to have a history with multiple major characters, it’s not often i’ve seen him be the main focus of any fanfics or art pieces. ]

Is your character considered hot™ in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK. [ put that faaaaaaaar away from me please tyty ]

Is your character considered strong in the fandom? ��YES / NO / IDK. [ i personally believe that Gerson is a strong and potentially powerful monster with fighting capability that could rival some of the stronger Monsters in the Underground due to his background as a fighter during the Human-Monster War, but since has waned in both reputation and fighting skill. we never fight him in game and as such, will never see how he compares numerically, but it’s clear from his dialogue that he knows how to fight professionally/cleverly and would have given a hard challenge. ]

Are they underrated?  YES / NO / IDK. [ i mentioned before that Gerson has ties with lots of major characters - I hardly see it being put into action or talked about! i also have a soft spot for elder/older characters in general since they seem to be overlooked in favor for younger characters that carry the action of plots - which I understand and totally get, but I still like to put these characters out there for the sake of it ]

Were they relevant for the main story?  YES / NO.

Were they relevant for the main character? YES / NO / THEY’RE THE PROTAG. [ he was a funny merchant dude that said “wahaha” a whole bunch of times and carried a magnifying glass; sure he and Frisk would have been good friends after the golden ending but most people have forgotten about their interaction with Gerson once out of Waterfall ]

Are they widely known in their world? YES / NO. [ as one of the older if not oldest Monsters in the Underground, or from his reputation as the “Hammer of Justice” from wartime. he is also a historian and is noted to have written a few of the books in the Librarby. definitely known in the Underground, but probably only in that community ]

How’s their reputation?  GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL. [ as mentioned before, a benefactor to the community and maybe even a sagely figure. a source of wisdom (even if cheeky) and a person of stability ]

How strictly do you follow canon?  — ehhhhhhhhhh both extremely canon compliant and then hands off the wheel, let jesus drive me away~ i only have so much canon material to work with so i have milked as much as offered to me, then went off to forge my own path in order to patch up the missing holes then add a few sprinkles. the base of the character is all there, but if you really want to get invested with him (or me) then we have a lot to walk through.

SELL YOUR MUSE! Aka try to list everything, which makes your muse interesting in your opinion to make them spicy for your mutuals.  —  old tortoise (NOT TURTLE) guy sells knick-knacks and cracks jokes, knows everyone’s dirty secrets but thinks they’re just funny to think about them than use them. an elder in the community who has stories to tell and lessons to teach, who has lived through half of recorded history and now spends his time just trying to make things around him interesting. a war veteran who protects his community and understands the horror of the world, but keeps eyes looking into the future even in the face of grimness itself. plays the accordion and harmonica, could probably square dance if he knew what that was. will call you kiddo.

Now the OPPOSITE, list everything why your muse could not be so interesting (even if you may not agree, what does the fandom perhaps think?).  —  little to no motivation to find a passion for himself that would benefit or service just himself; his entire sense of worth comes from servicing others in some way (being a soldier and protecting people; recording history in order to teach future generations; maintaining a shop in order to literally service others) and lack of action due to decrepitude in old age. close-minded compared to other Monsters, as he doesn’t actually take to think of humans or outsiders kindly; judgmental to the point of being racist. proud and dislikes being one-upped that it could lead to pettiness, and despite his positive outlooks, very pessimistic worldview.

What inspired you to rp your muse?  —  funfact: Gerson is my first tumblr RP muse ever, and since i was worried about duplicate anxiety when i first started i specifically wrote him since he was a smaller character with less attention - i’ve since learned i have no anxiety about it so it’s no longer a problem, but what keeps me going today is the challenge of writing someone so different from me. the elder aesthetic along with homely, almost cottagecore kind of vibe is also appealing, and the humor that comes with gerson is a joy to write out.

What keeps your inspiration going?  —  reading literature, music, artwork, pinterest, replaying the game, and doing little hobbies that would embody the character (collecting or sewing, for example) are things i can do by myself, but with other people i have the most drive when i can have friendly and nonpersonal arguments/debates about character motives or about source material like what made a character act like this or that, or about really anything as long as it makes me seriously think about characters critically and force me to recognize flaws.

Some more personal questions for the mun.

Give your mutuals some insight about the way you are in some matters, which could lead them to get more comfortable with you or perhaps not.

Do you think you give your character justice?  YES / NO / I SINCERELY HOPE I DO? [ unfortunately i’m not a tortoise monster who lived for probably centuries if not decades older than myself, but i enjoy writing older characters and hope that other ppl see the potential gerson has like i do ]

Do you frequently write headcanons?  YES / NO / SORT OF? [ you know when you have a concept and in your own mind you can see it clearly, without fuzziness or confusion, but you can’t seem to put it clearly into words without it turning into an essay because you need to connect all the other points that’s in the single concept you envisioned? yea. ]

Do you sometimes write drabbles?  YES / NO [ bro i should.. ]

Do you think a lot about your Muse during the day? YES / NO [ hmu if you got pinterest and i’ll give u tons and tons of boards ]

Are you confident in your portrayal?  YES / NO / SORT OF? [ this is unfair to answer as (AFAIK) i am the only person writing Gerson in... any capacity. despite that i like to think i bring out the humorous side of him, and show ppl that he and other NPCs are tons of potentials and shouldn’t be overlooked because they aren’t popular ]

Are you confident in your writing?  YES / NO. [ i always believed my style and my skill in not only PSDs or aesthetics, but analysis or understanding was always a bit plain, without much flourish or complexity. while that is appealing on its own and has its own merits, i can’t help but feel i can always push myself to do a little more, add a little flavor, or paint an image that could only be done in writing. although i am doing enough to get the job done, i’m searching for a certain voice of writing that i like and want to integrate into creative writing in order to make it more personalized and more engaging. ]

Are you a sensitive person?  YES / NO. / SORTA. [ i despise pussyfooting and will often tell ppl straight up if i have a problem with them or something about them; straightforwardness, honesty, and integrity are some of my core values and that includes being harsh if it comes to it in order to keep order ]

Do you accept criticism well about your portrayal?  —  assuming it’s rooted in goodwill or from a point of analysis, absolutely! it’s one of the direct sources for growth and getting better at any craft, but as Tumblr loves to be.... jumpy, i’m always cautious when its not from someone i know.

Do you like questions, which help you explore your character?  —  YEA BUDDYYYYY

If someone disagrees to a headcanon of yours, do you want to know why?  —  absolutely, i thrive off friendly discourse as i mentioned.

If someone disagrees with your portrayal, how would you take it?  —  if we don’t discuss it as above, in lit any other case i’d say “well there are other blogs to follow” but since i’m like 99% sure i’m the only gerson blog that isn’t applicable lmao; the point still stands that everyone has the freedom to write a character as they wish. there are valid reasons to dislike a portayal but not a lot of valid reasons to attack someone for it - with the exception of ppl being gross. stop that, nasty.

If someone really hates your character, how do you take it?  —  strangely. it’s not my job to make people like a character, you either like them or not. if you dislike them for unreasonable points then, to leave in the previous response, “clowns will be clowns, no matter what you do. I just don’t get why you would follow someone if you hate their character to begin with.”

Are you okay with people pointing out your grammatical errors?  —  of course, as long as it’s polite and all that jazz!

Do you think you are easy going as a mun?   —  depends on the meaning - i like making new friends and i find it easy to talk to new people, be it about roleplay or other things like organizing video game play sessions. however, i also have on multiple occasions have approached ppl privately saying “this is annoying/this is problematic/this is inappropriate, stop” and been met with general disdain for voicing such so Who Knows..... (tm). at least on a private level. here, publicly, i’m pretty relaxed! memes and jokes are abound. as long as a person can be mature and responsible for their actions we can vibe, yo.

#definitely plan to link this in rules or something #as a guide for newcomers #what a nice meme! #* verbatim ⟐ meme.

[beautifulpaxielreads]

End of the Decade Favourite Book Tag

Thank you to @storytime-reviews for tagging me in this.

1. High fantasy books that are obsession-worthy.

The Daevabad Trilogy by S A Chakraborty. The level of detail in the worldbuilding in this Muslim-inspired fantasy is just extraordinary. Bring on book 3!

2. Urban fantasy books filled with people you want as friends.

I loved Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody. Great characters and great plotting. Like Six of Crows but not. I need to reread this one!

Also the Six of Crows duology because how can I not mention it. Also I was kind of obsessed with Nina and Matthias for a while.

3. Portal fantasy you fall in love with multiple times.

I mention Harry Potter later on, but it still deserves a spot here. Every time I pick up one of these books they surprise me with how good they are.

4. Novella that just makes you sigh cause it’s so lovely.

The Gentleman's Guide to Getting Lucky by Mackenzi Lee. Short but very sweet and funny.

5. Historically inaccurate but laugh out loud.

I think it's actually pretty historically accurate, but I'm gonna have to go with The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee. It was my favourite read of 2018.

Also special mention to A Brief History of Montmaray by Michelle Cooper. The island this book was set on may have been fictional, but this book was wholly entertaining and I always like rereading the funnier bits.

6. Satire that makes you reconsider your whole world view.

I don't know if it counts as satire, but reading Scythe by Neal Shusterman really made me think about our world in a really profound way. I kind of want to reread it.

Also not a satire but Room by Emma Donoghue. It's told in such an original way.

Oh, and if you really want satire, how about The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde? I probably would have enjoyed it more if I had understood all the references to classical literature but I still found it interesting.

7. Happy, happy, happy, and sad, sad, sad.

Lovely War by Julie Berry. So thought-provoking and beautifully written.

Also I'm going to be unoriginal and say The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. Who hasn't been devastated by that ending?

8. No, I’m not too old for kids’ books, what are you talking about???

My two faves in this area are written for middle grade to teens, but I can't go past Sally Gardner's The Red Necklace and Eva Ibbotson's Journey to the River Sea.

Also The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton. Can't not include that one.

9. I’m also not too old for picture books either and never will be.

Angelina Ballerina by Katherine Holabird is a childhood favourite. Also anything illustrated by Juan Wijngaard and Kinuko Y. Craft, their work is just gorgeous.

10. Whoah, never expected that ending and to have that much fun!!!

I'd have to go for the Shadowfell trilogy by Juliet Marillier. The final book in the series, The Caller, was truly perfect and I was not expecting that at all.

Also The Twin's Daughter by Lauren Baratz-Logsted. That ending really threw me.

And how about the ending of The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton? I was confused about so many things in this book, but that ending was wasn't one of them. Such a fabulous twist - and one that actually made sense!

11. Like I’m scared, but I’m happy about it.

The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge was wonderfully written, but incredibly unnerving. I had to swear off reading other books by her for a while because they were quite disturbing and dark. Even now I can't quite bring myself to pick up one of her books.

12. Classically favourite.

I remember really enjoying Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. And I read it in the 2000s so it isn't really eligible for this list, but Mary Shelley's Frankenstein made quite an impression on me - it wasn't what I was expecting at all.

Honorable mention to Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen which I started reading but never finished for some reason. 2020 will be the year I do this because what I did read was delightful.

13. Party in your ears.

William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Mean Girls by Ian Doescher. Mean Girls (duh) as Shakespeare might have written it. I originally bought this as a paperback but then I realised I would probably get more enjoyment out of it as an audiobooks, given it was written in script format. Boy, was I right!

Also I've referred to this series in the next question already, but I can't not mention the latter two books in The Illuminae Files, Gemina and Obsidio, done in audiobook format. The full cast and sound effects combined to create true awesomeness. I still have to listen to the first book, Illuminae.

14. Boom!!! Pow!!! Wham!!!

The Illuminae Files trilogy by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. So innovative and cleverly designed - and very, very well written.

15. Oh wow, this is me!!

It's got to be Harry Potter, doesn't it?! It's been such an integral part of my life - I was in the fandom for a good ten years. I queued up outside the bookshop on release days to get the last three books. I saw all the movies. It gave me my original OTP, Ron and Hermione. I would not be who I am today without those books and I still can't quite let go of this fandom in spite of its problematic aspects. These books made me.

16. I can’t stop thinking about this book.

A Sky Painted Gold by Laura Wood was absolutely the definition of magical. As soon as I finished it I wanted to go back to the beginning and read it again.

17. A book you got from Tumblr that made it to your fave.

I wouldn't say I got this from Tumblr directly, but it's Tumblr that enhanced my appreciation and love for it - and introduced me to an incredible fandom. It's The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, of course. Can't wait for the prequel coming out in May!

18. A book you had high expectations for and then the author OVER delivered.

Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor. Like I really enjoyed Strange the Dreamer but the second book was on another level. All the plot threads were wrapped up in a really satisfying way and Laini Taylor is an insanely beautiful writer.

I had such fun making this list, it brought back so many memories of all the books I've read over the years.

Unfortunately I also wrote it in Tumblr mobile, so it took FOREVER to do, so I really can't be bothered to tag people. If you see this post on your dash and haven't done this challenge yet (and want to), consider yourself tagged.

Hope you have a great day, and if you've made it all the way to the end of this post, congratulations on your achievement! 🤣😁

#beautifulpaxiel reads #harry potter #j k rowling #end of the decade book tag #not tagging all these authors because it would take too long #feel free to chime in with your thoughts

[etjwrites]

OC Backstory Week 7 - Free/Secrets:

Here we are at the last week – thanks so much to @yourocsbackstory​ for hosting, I've had a blast! As always I've discovered a couple new WIPS I'm eager to learn more about, and I've had the best time digging into Bo's past and uncovering what goes into his prickly and standoffish yet unexpectedly delightful personality.

Bo is a viewpoint character from my current WIP Thorunn, which will be my second young adult novel, and my first published sci-fi tale, and I can hardly wait to share his further adventures with everybody in 2020. But without further ado, the last backstory! (Yes, I wrote my own questions.)

What secrets does your OC have? Is it something innocent, or something that would be their downfall if discovered? To what lengths will they go to protect their secret?

Haven't you wrung enough secrets from me already? Fine I'll bite. No, not literally. Tch. You people. Anyway, growing up I didn't really have much of a filter – still don't, much to certain people's, whats the word, consternations – so me and secrets didn't mix much. But uh, there's a couple things I can think of that were big enough for me to keep quiet about. (Hey, Ken, remember that time the Innah's ceremonial spinner-floss robes mysteriously vanished?)

Bo hadn't meant to take them, he really hadn't.

What he'd wanted, just a for moment, were for things to go back to the way they used to be. When P'rraa wasn't gone, and Bo would help him piece together the exquisite robes worn by the Tribe Elders on special occasions. He'd been little, but his father had had him fetch spools and tie knots and snip dangling threads. Together, they'd created delicate, shimmering garments that seemed spun of flowers and wind and sunlight. P'rraa had always squinched his eyes tightly together and purred deeply whenever he caught sight of an Elder wearing one of his creations, embroidered with scenes telling the wearer's personal history – their battles, their losses, their accomplishments – and Bo couldn't help but bask in his happiness. He'd always been happy when P'rraa was happy. He hadn't touched anything related to the craft since that awful day five years ago. And then he'd seen it. While playing hunters and prey with Ken and Seri at the Innah's loft Bo had discovered a hidden compartment cleverly disguised to appear as part of the wall. He'd slipped inside, grinning wide at his success; Ken and Seri wouldn't find him this time! He'd quickly grown bored of the waiting however, certain in his imminent win, and started quietly exploring. The space he'd concealed himself within was cramped but smelled pleasant, like fragrant flowers after a morning mist. Clothes hung all around him, and he felt his ears prick with embarrassment at realising he'd chosen a hiding spot inside the Innah's personal closet. But he'd wanted to win, so he stayed put and occupied himself by trying to read the histories writ in pictures on her many colourful robes. The very last spinner-floss garment he'd taken into his hands had forced tears to well up. He knew the cut of the cloth, the style of the embroidery, the peculiar placement of the buttons. Afterall, Bo watched Nyss slip on a similar set of robes before hurrying to his work every day, spent hours sitting amongst the forever unfinished projects hanging in his father's long neglected workshop. Why hadn't P'rraa stuck to stitching? Why did he have to call upon his dusty Igis training and go out to Ethaba with everybody else? The thoughts overtook Bo like the Laika river dragging storm-broken branches downstream, and he heard the rip before he saw the unwitting damage he'd caused. Eyes wide, he'd stared at the leaf thin garment irreparably shredded between his claws – but no, no it wasn't. He could fix it, P'rraa had shown him how to make them, and he remembered the process. And so that was how Bo had ended up in his current predicament, feigning a sudden cough to beg off playing, the priceless robe stuffed under his vest while he stole back to the cobwebbed space that was at once comforting and unfamiliar. He laid the ruined material on a dusty workbench and stared at it, close to tears at the extent of the damage. Hours, days worth of work, and he'd destroyed his father's most prized handiwork in a matter of moments. Slash marks tore right through the scene depicting the Innah being anointed Elder, and long trailing threads had pulled away from the fraying edges. But he could mend it, Bo knew he could, so he blew off the dust and cleared away the cobwebs and set to work. His first attempt was an utter disaster, wherein he made the problem that much worse, and lost several buttons which rolled away and refused to be found, no matter how hard he looked. He learned then, to test-sew on scrap pieces of fabric first. His second and third and fourth attempts were hardly any better, and he quickly learned to wear gloves to stop his claws piercing and damaging the flimsy bolts of cloth he worked with. But bit by bit, Bo improved, dashing into P'rraa's workshop every day after school before Nyss could return and ask what he was up to, and taking a sudden, avid interest in spinner-floss production. The ruined parts of the robes he replaced entirely, carefully cutting together pieces from what parts of his father's half-finished garments hadn't been moth eaten. Some of the Innah's story ended up missing, but he carefully drew it as best as he could remember, before following his dark lines with bright coloured threads. The better he grew, the faster he worked, driven by guilt and the memory of the night the robes had been discovered missing. They'd questioned everybody on the garment's whereabouts, as the Innah used them for all her most important ceremonies, and was not pleased to have lost them, and Bo had almost fainted after squeaking out that he knew nothing of the missing garments. Nyss had thrown a rather sideways look at him, but never thought to look in P'rraa's workshop. Afterall, Bo was known for destroying things, not trying to fix them. He started begging off playing at the loft, electing instead to take their adventures to the river and the mines, unable to sit still for an afternoon in the Tree of Elders knowing the Innah's jaggedly stitched robes sat stuffed into a box in the corner of his workshop. But the day finally came when Bo could do no more, and he climbed out of his window one night, trying to return the repaired mass of fabric before anyone could see him and discover his awful secret.

“I've been wondering when this day would arrive.” Bo froze, a dark shadow between the beams of moonlight slanting soft across the floor of the Innah's loft. “It's alright, child, come closer.” The Innah melted out of the darkness, a pipe in one hand and beckoning with the other. Terrified, and already caught, Bo did as instructed, almost shifting to s'hinoian form half a dozen times in his fright. “It was you. I thought so. May I see?” “It, it was an accident!” Bo stammered out, unwilling to part with his precious bundle right away. The Innah only waited, patience written in every crinkle of her smiling eyes. Bo gathered up what little composure he had left and shook out the cloth in his arms. Even as he offered it to the Innah, he could tell his best efforts hadn't been enough. The parts he'd added weren't the same colours, and where P'rraa had originally made the scenes life-like and vivid, Bo's attempts looked like a kit who'd just learned to glyph. “It was an accident,” he said again, trembling, his fur rising puffy from his skin. “I didn't mean to, I'm sorry.” The Innah took the garment from him, smoothing it over and inspecting every inch. Bo screwed his eyes shut, not wanting to see the loathing in hers when she discovered how badly he'd destroyed his fathers' handiwork, and what a poor job he'd done in repairing it. “You've worked hard haven't you?” Bo cracked open an eye to see the Innah still smiling at him, the robes now draped over the soft sleep-tunic she wore. “I do wish you'd come to me straightaway – the sooner one confesses their misdeeds, the less one has to live with guilt. But I forgive you, child. You've done your best to make amends, even if you don't quite have the touch with stitchery that your father did. Now go home and sleep, and come back and play with Ken and Seri in the morning.”

(Yes. It was me. Surprise!) I quit sewing again after that, but I never forgot how kind she was to a scared little kit who was convinced she'd throw him out of the tribe on account of his destroying and rather badly repairing her favourite robes. She never told anyone either, despite the looks she got the next time she wore her obviously altered robes to the next important tribal affair, and I was always honest with her after that. We're done now, right? It's been an. . . a not entirely awful experience, and I'm looking forward to coming back never.  Jolene, Matt, Brett – thanks. You've not been terrible hosts, and if this whole thing helps humans be less afraid of klia'ans, I guess it was worth it. But next time, ask Seri?

@igotablankpage​​​ @musicofglassandwords​​​ @elaynab-writing​​​ @sheabutterskyes​​​  @alcego-writes​​​ @valdifarniente @writeanapocalae​​​

#thorunn #writeblr #am writing #wip #yourocsbackstory #a bit longer today for the last one! #seriously this has been so much fun! #I very much enjoyed myself you do wonderful work Cirianne #I'm hoping to clean these up a bit and throw them up on wattpad at some point. #writblr #Bo #etjwrites #writers on tumblr #scifi #scifi writeblr

[blubberquark]

Seven Types of Game Devs And The Games They Make

The Computer Science Student

The computer science student had to write a game for class in the fourth semester. The game must demonstrate OOP design and programming concepts, and solid grasp of C++.

This game is written not to be fun to play, but to demonstrate your skill to the professors - or to their poor assistants who have to read the code and grade the accompanying term paper. The core loop of the game is usually quite simple, but there are many loosely connected mechanics in there that barely don’t really fit. For example, whatever the core gameplay is, there could be birds in the sky doing some kind of AI swarm behaviour, there could be physics-enabled rocks on the floor, there could be a complicated level and unit editor with a custom XML-based format, and all kinds of weird shaders and particle effects.

And with all this tech infrastructure and OOP, there are just two types of enemies. That’s just barely enough to show you understand how inheritance works in C++.

The core gameplay is usually bad. Un-ergonomic controls, unresponsive game feel, flashy yet impractical 3D GUI widgets make it hard to play - but not actually difficult to beat, just unpleasant. The colours are washed-out, and everything moves a bit too slow. There is no overarching design, the moment-to-moment gameplay is not engaging, and the goal feels like an afterthought.

But that’s ok. It is to be expected. The professors are CS professors. They (or rather their assistants) don’t grade the game based on whether the units are balanced, whether the graphics are legible, or whether the game is any fun at all. They grade on understanding and correctly applying what you learned in class, documentation, integration of third-party libraries or given base code, and correct implementation of an algorithm based on a textbook.

The CS student usually writes a tower defense game, a platformer, or a SHMUP. After writing two or three games like this, he usually graduates without ever having gotten better at game design.

The After-Hours Developer

The after hours programmer has a day job doing backend business logic stuff for a B2B company you never heard of.

This kind of game is a labour of love.Screenshots might not look impressive at first glance. There is a lot going on, and the graphics look a bit wonky. But this game is not written to demonstrate mastery of programming techniques and ability to integrate third-party content, tools and libraries. This game was made, and continues to be developed, because it is fun to program and to design.

There is a clear core loop, and it is fun and engaging. The graphics are simple and functional, but some of them are still placeholder art. This game will never be finished, thus there will always be place-holders as long as the code gets ahead of the art. There is no XML or cloud-based savegame in there just because that is the kind of thing would look impressive in a list of features.

More than features, this games focuses on content and little flourishes. This game has dozens of skills, enemies, weapons, crafting recipes, biomes, and quests. NPCs and enemies interact with each other. There is a day-night cycle and a progression system.

While the CS student game is about showing off as many tech/code features as possible, this kind of programmer game is about showing off content and game design elements and having fun adding all this stuff to the game.

This game will be finished when the dev gets bored with adding new stuff. Only then, he’ll plan to add a beginning and an ending to the game within the next six months, and go over the art to make it look coherent. The six months turn into two years.

The after-hours developer often makes RPGs, metroidvanias, or rogue-like games. These genres have a set of core mechanics (e.g. combat, loot, experience, jumping) and opportunity for a bunch of mechanics built around the core (e.g. pets, crafting, conversation trees, quest-giving NPCs, achievements, shops/trading, inventory management, collecting trinkets, skill trees, or combo attacks).

The First-Time Game Jammer

The first-time game jammer wants to make his first game for an upcoming game jam. He knows many languages, but he does a lot of machine learning with torch7 for his day job, so he has decided to use LÖVE2D or pico-8 to make a simple game.

This guy has no training in digital art, game design, or game feel. But the he has a working knowledge of high-school maths, physics, and logic. So he can write his own physics engine, but doesn’t know about animation or cartoon physics. He doesn’t waste time writing a physics engine though. He just puts graphics on the screen. These graphics are abstract and drawn in mspaint. The numbers behind everything are in plain sight. Actions are either triggered by clicking on extradiegetic buttons or by bumping into things.

The resulting game is often not very kinetic or action-oriented. In this case, it often has a modal/stateful UI, or a turn-based economy. If it is action-oriented, it could be a simple platformer based around one core mechanic and not many variations on it. Maybe it’s a novel twist on Pong or Tetris.

The first-time game jammer successfully finished his first game jam by already knowing how to program in Lua, copying a proven game genre and not bothering to learn any new tools during the limited jamming time. Instead, he wrote the code to create every level by hand, in separate .lua files, using GNU EMACS.

The Solo Graphic Designer

The graphic designer has a skill set and approach opposite to those of the two programmers described above. He is about as good at writing code as the programmer is at drawing images in mspaint. The graphic designer knows all about the principles of animation, but has no idea how to code a simple loop to simulate how a tennis ball falls down and bounces off walls or the ground. He used to work in a team with coders, but this time he wants to make his own game based on his own creative vision.

The graphic designer knows all about animation tools, 3D modelling, composition. He has a graphic tablet and he can draw. He knows all about light and shade and gestalt psychology, but he can’t write a shader to save his life.

Naturally, the graphic designer plays to his strengths and uses a game engine with an IDE and a visual level editor, like Unity3D, Construct, or GameMaker.

The graphic designer makes a successful game by doing the opposite of what the coder does, because he does it well. The screenshots look good, and his game gets shared on Twitter. He struggles writing the code to aim a projectile at the cursor in a twin-stick shooter, but we live in a world of Asset Stores and StackOverflow.

The resulting game is a genre-mixing thingy full of set pieces, cut scenes, and visual-novel-style conversations. The actual gameplay is walking around and finding keys for locks, but it’s cleverly recontextualised with a #deep theme and boy does it look pretty.

The Engine Coder

The engine coder is like the CS student on steroids. He has nothing to prove. He knows his C++. He lives in a shack in Alaska, and pushes code to GitHub over a satellite connection. He also knows his Lua, C#, Python, and Haskell. The engine coder writes a physics engine, particle system, dialogue engine, planning-based mob AI, savegame system, a network layer and GUI widget library.

He has written five simple demos for the engine: A first-person walking simulator, a third-person platformer, a very pretty glowing orb swarm shader thingy, a non-interactive simulation of a flock of sheep grazing and a pack of wolves occasionally coming in to cull the herd with advanced predator AI, and a game where you fly a spaceship through space.

Somebody comments in the forums that it’s hard to even write Pong or Tetris in the engine. The Engine Coder is more concerned with optimising batched rendering and automatically switching LoD in the BSP tree so you can land on planets in space without loading screens.

The Overeager Schoolboy

The schoolboy has an idea for a game. He saves his money to buy Game Maker (or RPG Maker) and tells his all friends about his amazing idea. Then he makes a post about it on tumblr. Then he makes a sideblog about the game and posts there too, tagged #game development.

Unfortunately, the schoolboy is 15, and while he is talented, he doesn’t really know how to program or draw. He’s good at math, and he can draw with a pencil. Unfortunately, he wants to learn digital art, level design, and programming all in one go. He already knows all the characters for his game, and he writes posts about each of them individually, with pencilled concept art and flavourful lore.

Even more unfortunately, our schoolboy is hazy on how big the game is actually going to be, and what core mechanic the game should be based around.

After designing sprite sheets and portraits for ten characters you could add to your party, plus the Big Bad End Boss, he realises that he has no idea how to get there, or how to make the first level. He starts over with another set of tools and engine, but he doesn’t limit his scope.

In an overdramatic post two months later, he apologises to the people who were excited to play the game when it’s done. A week later he deletes the tumblr. He never releases a playable demo. He never gets constructive feedback from game developers.

The Game Designer’s Game Designer

The game designer’s game designer is not exactly a household name, but he has done this for a while. While you have never heard of him, the people who made the games you like have. All your favourite games journalists also have. Through this connection, many concepts have trickled down into the games you play and the way your friends talk to you about games they like.

The game designer’s game designer has been going at this for a while. When he started, there was no way to learn game design, so he probably studied maths, psychology, computer science, industrial design, or music theory.

The games fall outside of genres, and not just in the sense of mixing two genres together. They are sometimes outside of established genres, or they are clearly inside the tradition of RTS, rogue-likes or clicker games, but they feel like something completely new.

The games of the game designer’s game designer are sometimes released for free, out of the blue, and sometimes commissioned for museums and multimedia art festivals. Some of them are about philosophy, but they don’t merely mention philosophical concepts, or use them to prop up a game mechanic (cloning and transporters, anyone?). They explore concepts like “the shortness of life” or “capitalism” or “being one with the world” or “unfriendly AI” through game mechanics.

But they also explore gameplay tropes like “inventory management“ or “unidentified magic items“ or “unit pathfinding“.

Sometimes bursts of multiple games are released within weeks, after years of radio silence. Should you ever meet the game designer’s game designer, you tell him that you got a lot out of the textbook he wrote, but you feel guilty that you never played one of his games. So you lie and tell him you did.

#game design #video games #game development #jokes #listicle

[lazybirdxd]

The Laws of Taylor Swift ⚡

Taylor Swift is an amazing performer, singer, songwriter, but most of all, she’s amazing at creating appealing riddles for the masses. I want to talk here very briefly about some of the techniques she has used to make it in the music industry that I have observed after reading the book The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene , because I find it interesting and an appropriate example of following your objectives in a graceful and clever manner.

Disclaimer: I’m not going to write all the laws, rather I’m going to write the ones I’ve observed (clearly without a specific order) and consider have been the origin of some of the greatest achievements in her career. She understood them, and since she said she always wants to have a role model to look up to, following her command, we’re going to make one out of her by analyzing the behaviours that led her there, and maybe we can also have a little sympathy for the work she has to do in order to deliver a wondrous experience as a performer and musician.

Let’s get started!

The first law I noticed she uses is “Conceal your intentions: Keep people off balance and in the dark by never revealing the purpose behind your intentions”. The obvious way she uses this is through the many clues and messages hidden in her music videos, in her music in general, in the recent countdown she made for her single ME! As well as her Instagram posts with very confusing meanings, and the change in marketing strategy with each new era. What this does is keeping people expectant of what she will do next, giving her the reigns of her kingdom back by leading people where she wants them to go, in this case, encouraging speculation about her art, or product. This is also an intersection with the law “Court attention at all cost” of which we’ll talk about next.

So… “Court attention at all cost”. This is necessary if you work in an image-heavy industry like hers, you need to make sure you are an object of interest, desire and popularity, because all of these things mean you have an influence on people, because most people will do whatever they have to do to experience pleasure since pleasure is often addictive and keeps them sedated. In our case is the joy and pleasure of being around you, or rather her.

Our girl also does her best to “Create an air of mystery” because “In a world increasingly banal and familiar the enigmatic instantly draws attention”. And the way she does this is through riddles and filling her videos with a lot of details to make us watch them repeatedly, which again, draws attention to herself, which again, she needs.

The next law I’ve seen Taylor uses is “Use selective honesty and generosity to disarm your victim” because “open-hearted gestures of honesty will bring down the guard of even the most suspicious people”, and that’s the reason why she does these making of videos of songs, because her brand is primarily based on the concept of closeness and relatability which give her fans the opportunity to engage in her songs and feel as if these very generic songs were written especially for them and adding the social media interactions she has with her fans, and the fact that these platforms give you a very personalized dashboard creating the one on one perspective Taylor so cleverly uses, no wonder people feel as if she’s their best friend. This illusion is so perfectly crafted that it doesn’t really matter if you fit in the targeted audience she aims at, with enough time you get hooked.

Next one!

“Get others to do the work for you, but always take the credit” because “that furthers your own cause” wait… But Taylor always gives recognition to the people who work for her! That’s true, but what Taylor doesn’t show you is what they actually do for her, all the planning, the hard days and nights she and her team put, she only shows a little tiny bit of what her job and that of the people around her entail. This leads us to the prior law with regards to selective honesty. She’s consciously creating this God like aura where she’s omnipresent and all powerful at the same time she’s reaching out to people, making them feel special, unique, an unbreakable bond. She’s practically telling us “Hey look, I’m a goddess but you can touch me” or at least make you think you can, which is another wonderful thing about her, she has a whole team working for her, but she makes the managing of her brand seem effortless and approachable.

Last one!

“Recreate yourself by forging a new identity, one that commands attention and never bores the audience”. Oh, honey! That’s what has kept her alive, Taylor has changed dramatically her brand over the years, from Country to Pop, and from the classical femenine to the dark themes, and contrasting again. People get bored and upset if they can predict your every move, if they can read you like an open book, and Taylor clearly knows this, that’s why, even withouth the Kardashian incident in 2016, she would have made a dramatic change anyways, that’s what keeps her alive, what maintains the public interest in her and gives her a career to begin with. Some days ago I heard an interesting theory about Taylor on Taydar Podcast that said Taylor wasn’t necessarily negatively affected by 2016, but rather it was us underestimating the amount of control she has with regards to her public image. That said, she may have orchestrated that incident or part of it at least in 2016 to see how strong her influence was and as a way to find out if she could rise again from nothing, giving a 360° turn to her career. Even if the theory is not true, what is true is that brands need to reinvent themselves or they die. Simple as that. Taylor also shows us these re-creations of her through her music trajectory, her albums through 12 years of making music are different, because she knows this very well.

To conclude, I’m sorry this post was really huge, but since everyone is analyzing everything right now to find the next clue, I just thought maybe I could analyze instead a different aspect of her and give a little insight as well. I hope you found this interesting as I did :)

#gaylor #Kaylor #girls power

[nomattertheoceans]

I made you a promise - chapter 16

Before I let you read on, a few important announcements.

I will be leaving tumblr from Sunday 21st, until I’ve read Kingdom of Ash. Because I’ve already put my spoiler tags up, and still I started to see things about the book (I don’t know how these people got their hands on the book, but how about using some tags, people? I’m so angry about it, I don’t want to dwell on it and ruin your day too….)

Knowing myself and how I read, I’ll probably start reading it on Friday 26th, and will hopefully have finished it on Sunday or something.

Once I come back to tumblr, this blog will definitely not be spoiler free!!! I will be using these tags on every koa post I share: “koa spoilers”, “koa spoiler”, “kingdom of ash spoiler” and “kingdom of ash spoilers” That way, if you want to avoid any spoilers, just filter at least one of these tags and you’ll be safe in my blog.

Regarding the fic: this might be my last update in a while. In November, I won’t be updating it at all, because I’ll spend the month of November  developing my original story, and I can’t focus on my story if I keep thinking about my fics. So I’ll try to get a chapter out between the moment when I’ll finish Kingdom of Ash, and the beginning of November, but nothing certain. In any case, whether it be this chapter or the next one, I promise I won’t leave you guys on a big cliffhanger hahahaha (I’m really not that cruel ^^), and I also promise that I am in no way abandoning this fic, and will be back in December! I just need some time for my other project :)

Anyway, that’s it I guess. Thank you so so much to everyone who reads, likes, comments,... I love it all!!

@highladyofherondale @amazinginglyawesomeperson @illyrianbeauty

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Feyre sat down at her small desk after lunch, a smile lingering on her face. She’d just eaten with Rhys, and at some point during the meal, he’d casually referred to her as his girlfriend, before realizing what he’d said and looking at her with dread in his eyes. She hadn’t been able to stop her laugh at the sight of him freaking out, a warm feeling spreading in her heart at the idea that he considered her his girlfriend, that it had come as naturally to him as it had to her. Still smiling, she opened her inbox to check emails, somewhat mindlessly reading through them, thinking - and blushing - about something Rhys had whispered in her ear before leaving her at the door. Something about making his girlfriend moan when he…

There was an email from New York. From John, the author she’d met with the week before. And the email was titled: “John Helvar - Illustrated edition - Trip to NYC?” She opened it frantically and read what he’d written to her:

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Email sent on: Tuesday, October 30th at 1:04 p.m.

Feyre,

How are you?

I’m writing to you as a follow up of our meeting in Velaris last week. I was charmed by all of the ideas you presented to me, and showed them to my publisher on Friday. She also liked them, and would like to meet you and discuss them further before making a final decision. We’re both available at the beginning of next week, and would like for you to come to New York for a few days. It would be a trip from Sunday afternoon until Wednesday morning, allowing us two full days to work. The publishing house would pay for your plane tickets and your hotel.

Let me know before Thursday if you’re available, to book everything for you.

Looking forward to seeing you soon in New York,

John.

She wasn’t sure she was breathing. He wanted her to come to New York. To meet his publisher. To craft a contract. Which meant he wanted to work with her, he wanted her to create every single one of the illustrations for his books. An entire collection, with about 100 to 150 pages per book. After meeting her twice, he trusted her enough to agree to working with her for the next few months, the next few years. She felt her heart racing in her chest, her breathing became jagged and her hands were shaking.

She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t go to New York and meet with these people when she had to drag herself out of bed every morning, when she found every drawing she made harder than the last. Not when she’d been unable to pick up a paintbrush for months, her only drawings being those requested for work. She’d felt sort of confident during the meetings with him, but it hadn’t been serious. For all that she wanted and needed this job, she hadn’t considered the possibility that he might actually choose her. Her vision blurred and she realized she was crying. The realization woke her up and she tried to force her body to calm down. Nothing was decided yet, she thought, clenching at her desk to keep herself grounded, he simply wanted her to meet the rest of the team that was working on the project. Maybe he didn’t even want to work only with her, maybe she would be part of a bigger team of illustrators and her work wouldn’t even be noticed.

But it didn't work, she was still panicking, tears still rolled down on her cheeks. Without thinking, she picked up her phone and dialed.

***

The day was beautiful. Granted, it was raining, and he was freezing, and he had about a zillion paperwork to finish before he could go home tonight. But how could this day not be beautiful, when he’d just had lunch with his wonderful girlfriend - it was official now - and she was coming to his place to spend the night. He’d have to buy some stuff for her if she started to sleep at his house more regularly, like a toothbrush, some of her shampoo, maybe some stuff for her period if she wanted, a hairbrush,...

He was driven away from his mental shopping list by the vibrations of his phone in his pocket. Smiling at the name on the screen, he answered:

“Hey you, miss me already?”

“Oh Gods Rhys, I’m freaking out.” Her voice was stranded, and her breathing frantic.

“What’s going on? Are you ok?”

“I am. It’s just…. I received an email from the guy I met with the other week. He wants me to go to New York next week to meet his publishing team.”

“Feyre, that’s great!” He wasn’t really an expert in the publishing world, but the author wanting her to meet with his publisher was bound to be a good sign.

“I… Yeah I guess it is.” But her voice was flat, and he started wondering what was in this email that got her so freaked out.

“Darling, what’s going on? You don’t sound pleased.”

“No, I am.” A pause. “I am. See you tonight at your place?”

“Y - yes, sure. Are you sure you’re okay?”

But she had already hung up before his question was over.

***

She refused to approach the subject of New York for the entire evening, cleverly avoiding talking about it, and bluntly staring at him when he tried to bring it up. So they ate in near silence, Rhys trying and failing to make her open up to him, and then keeping quiet, hoping she might feel better if he left her alone. They washed the dishes, turned off the lights and got up to his bedroom. He was fishing out a clean pair of underpants to sleep in when he caught a glimpse of her in the mirror, seated on his bed, her hand tucked between her thighs, crying silently. He turned around and hurried to her, kneeling down in front of her.

“Feyre, what’s going on?”

She avoided his eyes, and was clenching her hands together, tears rolling down her cheeks silently. Still without looking at him, she said: “Are you… Are you mad at me?”

“What? No, of course not. Why would you think that?”

“Well… I don’t know. Because I didn’t want to talk about New York, and you might think I want to hide something from you, and be mad.” Her voice had grown quieter as she talked, and she looked so sad, Rhys decided then and there that if he ever met her ex-boyfriend, he wouldn’t mind punching him in the face once or twice.

“Feyre, please, look at me.” And he was pleading her, pleading because he wanted her to look into his eyes and understand that he would never react like that, with her or anyone else. She met his eyes but she was still sobbing silently, her beautiful face stained by tears, and her eyes red. “Feyre, you don’t have to tell me everything. Ever. If you don’t want to tell me about something, it’s absolutely fine, and normal.” He rested his hands on her thighs gently. “I simply stopped talking about it because I thought I was annoying you, and I thought you’d feel better if I left it alone. I’m sorry, I didn’t want to make it worse.”

He stopped talking and let her cry, not wanting to make her feel like she had to stop before she felt better. She cried for a while longer, and then she managed to calm down enough to take in deep breaths. He got up from his knees, sat down beside her and gently took her head between his hand. He brushed away her tears with his thumbs, and slowly, so that she’d understand what he was doing and stop him if she wanted to, he hugged her. She gripped his jumper and he tightened his grip on her back, pulling her even closer to him.

“I don’t think I’m going to go to New York,” her voice was a mere whisper, as if she was indeed telling him a secret, but she was steady.

“Can I ask you why?” He kept his voice equally low.

“I don’t think it’s going to be worth it.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m not good enough to do this job, Rhys. And even if I was, even if the people I’d met with liked my work… I would never be able to deliver.”

“Why would you think that? You’ve been doing this job for years.”

“But this is different. It’s… It’s such a big commitment. If I do agree to work with them, I’ll probably be involved in this project for years. It’s seven books to illustrate. It would take so long, and I can’t guarantee them that I’ll be able to manage it.”

He gently forced her to move away from him so that he could look her in the eyes when he answered:

“Feyre, this is your job, and from what you’ve shown me, you’re pretty good at it. I have no doubt that if you start working with them, you’ll deliver every single piece of art they need. And every single one of them will be beautiful.”

She gave him a sad smile, and it broke his heart a little, because he could see that she didn’t believe him, that she simply smiled because she thought he was only trying to reassure her. Gods, he wanted to help her so much it hurt, he could feel his heart break at the sight of her being so sad. He couldn’t stand to know that she didn’t believe in herself, when he himself believed in her more than he could express. And it seemed that there was nothing he could say or do that would change her feeling of being worthless.

“Feyre, why do you think you can’t manage?”

“Because… My job, it’s not serious. Working with your hobby, that’s not something serious, that’s not something you can do for your entire life. Drawing and painting, I never learned properly, I was never trained. And untrained skills are useless in the professional world, I wouldn’t be able to hold my own in such a big project.”

And then he knew. He knew why she was feeling so unconfident. And he was boiling with rage at the idea. But he needed to be sure:

“Did he tell you that? Did he call your talents useless and tell you that you couldn’t work with them?” Her silence was answer enough, and he wanted to cry. “Shit Feyre. You are so talented. What you’re able to create, what comes to life under your touch, it’s a gift. And it’s beautiful. Maybe you weren’t trained, but I have absolutely no doubt that you’ll be able to meet any challenge that comes your way. You’re strong, and you’re stubborn enough not to let anyone tell you otherwise.” She chuckled slightly at that, sniffing after her tears, “Feyre, I think you should go to New York, because you might regret it if you don’t. And I’m sure you won’t regret going. Worse thing happens, you don’t like it, you tell them that you don’t want to work with them, and you come back home. Free trip to New York!”

She actually laughed at his sloppy attempt at a joke, and wiped her eyes to get rid of the last tears lingering in them. His chest tightened, and he resisted the urge to take her in his arms again, allowing her space to breathe. When she looked at him once more, there was still sadness in her eyes, but it was coated with a joyful brightness that reflected in her smile. She advanced and kissed him fully, her lips wet and salty, and he kissed her back, hugging her against him.

***

She arrived at her desk the next morning rested and smiling softly. What had happened the night before had been… amazing. Rhysand had been amazing. She’d had one of her most awful days in a long time, and still he had found the right words, given her the exact amount of reassuring and affection and space to sort it out. He’d given her space, had allowed her to cry for as long as she’d needed it, not commenting on it, not asking for her to calm down. And she had felt so much better afterwards. She couldn’t exactly say that she was confident about her abilities to work on the project, but at least she was ready to try. She opened her computer and typed an answer:

RE: John Helvar - Illustrated edition - Trip to NYC?

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Draft written on: Wednesday, October 31st at 9:12 a.m.

Hello John,

Thank you for your email. I am thrilled that you liked my ideas for your book, and would love to come to New York next week to discuss it further with you and your associates. I am available on the dates you gave me, so feel free to book those days for our meeting. Please find enclosed a copy of my personal information for any booking you might have to make regarding this trip.

Looking forward to seeing you again,

Greetings from Velaris.

Feyre.

Looking at her screen, she exhaled loudly and clicked send, afraid she might lose her nerves if she waited any longer.

She was going to New York.

#acotar #acotar fanfic #feysand fanfic #feyre #feyre archeron #rhysand #rhys #feysand #rhys x feyre #feysand fanfiction #my writing

[thenorthernraven]

Book review #4: The Sun Is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon

Warning: Contains spoilers!!!

How long does it really take to fall in love with someone? A year? A couple of months? A few weeks? For Natasha and Daniel, it only took one day. Daniel is a poet at heart, Natasha believes in science and facts. Daniel is born from a Korean family who owns a hair care store, Natasha is an undocumented immigrant who is being deported in a few a hours. Daniel believes in fate, love, and destiny, Natasha doesn't. The Sun Is Also A Star follows two different people whose fates got twisted with each other's in the crowded streets of New York City. From meeting in a record shop to ending up on the roof of a building, where will fate and love finally take Natasha and Daniel?

For people who love reading romantic novels, this one's for you! From the cover to the title to the synopsis, The Sun Is Also A Star is sure to hook bookworms at first glance. I remember feeling so excited about reading this one some time before Christmas last year (yes, this is long due), especially because I knew Nicola Yoon from Everything, Everything. Although I wasn't able to read the novel, I really liked the film which I already watched twice, so I thought I'll give this one a shot, maybe it's just as good!

When I began reading The Sun Is Also A Star, the first thing that I noticed (and liked) was the fact that it gave readers insights as to what each character was thinking and feeling. The novel was written in a way that showed the point of view of not just Daniel and Natasha, but of all the other people they have crossed paths with as well. I also really liked how the author crafted each character to be very distinct and unique, which fit nicely with the natural flow of events, making it feel realistic and nonfictional. One example of this would be the ending when MAJOR SPOILER ALERT: Daniel and Natasha had to accept that they would have to go their separate ways, but then a few years later found each other in the same flight, a few seats away from each other. I think that part in the ending strengthened the novel's uniqueness and emphasis on fate and destiny, which makes it probably the part that I liked the most in the novel. The realness of Daniel and Natasha's characters were also manifested during the parts when they went to each other's neighborhoods and met each other's families. It showed the differences in culture between them, with Daniel being Korean-American with standards that every Asian child has to live up to (trust me, I know), while Natasha came from Jamaica and was having problems at home ever since her father's issue with acting. Lastly, I also liked how cleverly the all of the character's lives were intertwined with each other's, another factor that showed the magic of fate and destiny.

Moving on, what I disliked about the novel was either how slowly time flowed or how rapidly Daniel and Natasha's relationship developed. As I have mentioned, the whole novel was mostly dedicated to a single day in New York City; even though it mentioned some of the past events in the characters' lives, it focused mainly on the present. I personally would have liked to have more insight to the future (e.g. how Daniel communicated with and grew apart from Natasha after she and her family flew back to Jamaica, how the series of events led them to the same flight during the end of the novel, and even how Irene became a flight attendant and so on). Also, as I have mentioned, I found it too quick for Daniel and Natasha's relationship to progress, considering again, that their story spanned for only a day. Again, it's either time flowed too slow or their love story developed too quick, for me. Of course, all of those things that I mentioned are my personal thoughts and preferences, I am in no way trying to curve the story in a different direction as to how the author wanted to write it.

Overall, I wouldn't say that I fell in love with The Sun Is Also A Star. Quite honestly, during the last few pages of the book I found myself reading not for pleasure, but just for the sake of finishing. Needless to say, the novel didn't live up to my expectations. However, I would still love to watch the film as I read it will be released this coming May starring Charles Melton as Daniel and Yara Shahidi as Natasha!

I would recommend the novel to young adults who love romance and believe in fate, I'm sure you'll find yourselves relating to Daniel and Natasha as you follow their love story.

2 out of 5 stars!

#the sun is also a star #nicola yoon #book review #review #young adult novel #novel #daniel bae #natasha kingsley #charles melton #yara shahidi #book recommendations #books #books and libraries #booklr #booknerd #booklover #bookworm #tnravenreviews

[jackmmbirrell71]

The Power of The Dog (2021)

The best way to describe this film is if you mix Brokeback Mountain, Moonlight, Passing and Agatha Christie and mix it with some beautiful scenery and some cowboys and you’ve got yourself Jane Campion’s, The Power of The Dog. 

I really had no idea what to expect from this film. I hadn't watched any trailers for it or read anything about it all I knew that it was a western film and had Bennidict Cumberbatch in it. I have to say modern Western films don't do it for me but this film was perfect. It’s so cleverly written and it takes time for all the pieces to come into place but it’s so worth it. I loved the story and how it was a edgy and very modern way of telling a love story and I loved how the themes of desire, jealousy and forbidden love are explored. The film is very slow paced but it doesn't make you bored instead you are left wondering if your theories of what’s going on are actually true. I loved going into this film not knowing anything beach at first glance it looks like your normal western film was cowboys, horses and saloons but it takes you on this fascinating ride of love, revenge and introduces so subtly yet so present the themes of LGBTQ+. The dialogue is so perfectly crafted together and even line gives a deep understanding of the characters yet leaves it open for interpretations. My favourite part of the writing and directing of this film is the end (I'm not going to spoil it) where everything unfolds in a single shot and if you don't pay close attention you may lose the twist. The ending is fantastic as nothing is being said and pure cinema takes over to answer all the questions the audiences has and also bring the whole story together making your draw drop. All this clarity and twist in the story and genre of the story itself happens within only about 10 minutes and that’s what makes this film so great. You have endured their story for 2 hours where you think nothing much has happened but only to be shocked that everything you thought was nothing was actually the most important aspect to the plot. 

The cinematography is basic in the film yet is so powerful in capturing the essence of desire and being able to do nothing about it. The close up shots of hands, and the close ups of the metaphor of the saddle and rope all piece together to create this affect of lust yet nothing actually happens. It’s very clever to have a love story that only uses basic movements and gestures when conveying sexual tension and shy’s away completely from the actual romantic gestures such as kissing, sex and even hugging which are no where to be seen in the film surrounding the main character, Phil. 

The acting in this is super as well with a stand out performance from Cumberbatch himself who should be nominated for an Oscar this year. There are so many layers in the script that the actors perfectly deliver and they engross you into the film with just the simplest of actions such as the way they move their hands and their eyes. There is only one flaw I see in this film and it’s that I feel like it goes on for a bit more than it could have and I would have liked it if they sped some things up in the middle but apart from that the movie is pretty flawless. 

This film will stay with me for a very long time I feel. It’s nothing like I've ever seen before. It’s a strange yet beautiful and fresh new portrayal of a love story and it manages to cross into so many different borders and styles yet makes it all fit together perfectly I really hope this wins lots of awards this year. I love the storytelling in this film and the direction and writing is probably the biggest stand out from this dazzling, impactful film. 

RATING- ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1/2

#movie review

[rougeskies-jm-blog]

For That Skeptics: Ideas On Traditional Master of business administration Programs

I authored the above mentioned for any Plywood People ebook known as Seem Advice. I'm grateful for that daily possibilities to increase my DIY education, and I have found immense pleasure in discussing these training with other people because they craft their very own education.

  I have had the chance to see organizations like Chick-Fil-A and Gather Workshop, and that I now make a start with start-up leaders in most stages every day via my role with Plywood People, a non-profit leading a residential area of start-ups doing good. Put around you supportive people. Allow the naysayers stay without anyone's knowledge. If necessary take them off out of your existence temporarily.

  A different way to deal with this really is keep the intent to yourself. Create a self-resolve internally to complete exactly what the naysayers don't believe that you can do. Once you accomplish your career you'll feel happy for overcoming what others didn’t believe you could do this. Remember you do this on your own not for other people. Rev. Cameron Trimble may be the Executive Director, Chief executive officer from the Center for Progressive Renewal.

  She most lately offered being an consultant towards the Congregational Vitality and Discipleship Group of Local Church Ministries for that US Church of Christ so that as Affiliate Conference Minister of Church Rise in the Southeast Conference from the UCC. In her own ministry within the national setting, Rev. Trimble was responsible to add mass to national technique for birthing new places of worship.

  In her own conference setting, she directly oversaw the birthing of places of worship through the Southeast Conference. Each setting has provided her a distinctive perspective around the challenges of cultivating leaders outfitted to meet the requirements for the future of mainline Protestantism. Copywriting may be the single best technical skill a business person might have. I understand that's a bold claim, nevertheless its true. Now, whenever you hear copywriting you are mostly likely considering creating sexy advertisements. But it is not what I’m talking about. I’m getting used to this web based course factor. It's much simpler to complete than forcing yourself to get a magazine by yourself. 

  The classes (in some instances a large number of people) have cleverly organized themselves with wikis, social networking groups, mailing lists etc., so there's really a feeling of community learning. That does not mean the classes are always more enjoyable than getting a couple of pints together with your mates, however it entails I'm learning. Hello fellow DIY Master of business administration available, it has been just a few minutes since I have published an update towards the site, and so I figured I'd meet up with all of you really quick.

  The primary reason behind the delay is the fact that I've been hard at work on my Master of business administration.  That’s right, I've attended the dark side If validated learning was recognized more within the mainstream a few of these products would not have went to individuals stages because individuals people might have been in a position to believe that failure to make a viable product around the try isn't a bad factor.

  In the end you're learning a great deal along the way and after some persistence you'll eventually produce a viable service or product. So next time you are feeling you’ve hit a wall or taken the incorrect path just chalk up among individuals costly business courses and call it Validated Learning. The paint is barely dry, yet edX, the nonprofit start-up from Harvard and also the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has 370,000 students this fall in the first official courses. That’s nothing. Coursera, founded just last the month of January, has arrived at greater than 1. Seven million growing quicker than Facebook, boasts Andrew Ng, on leave from Stanford to operate his for-profit MOOC provider.

  Obviously, that's among the primary advantages of becoming an audiobook producer: you receive thoroughly uncovered with an excellent content! Especially whenever using a writer as productive and focused as Josh is. His stuff is really helpful, so relevant, that simply focusing on his projects has impacted my company with techniques which go well past the action of recording them. And also, since it was Josh’s second turn at bat narrating themselves, we could really get ready and revel in ourselves Leading a congregation in renewal or beginning a brand new ministry requires an entrepreneurial set of skills that values risk-taking, innovation and proper thinking. This program will explore the abilities, models, concepts and practices church leaders have to effectively guide congregations or non-profits right into a high-impact future. The skill of War meets "The Artist's Way" within this no-nonsense, profoundly inspiring help guide to overcoming creative blocks of each and every kind. 

  A succinct, engaging, and practical guide for succeeding in almost any creative sphere, World War 2 of Art is nothing under Sun-Tzu for that soul.

My conjecture for future years If you are no entrepreneur or perhaps an attractive female (who'll soon be overtaking the entry/mid amounts of corporate America) then you'll require an advanced degree. I don't believe that there's every other quality as necessary to success of any sort as the caliber of perseverance.

  It overcomes just about everything, even nature. John D. Rockefeller, Titan Life moves fast in the realm of internet marketing. Actually, since 2013, digital media consumption within the US States has elevated by 49 percent, based on comScore.

  Clearly I already got drawn underneath the personal time management riptide. I've been silent for 3 days as visitors traipsed through my house. The final three days continues to be literally exhausting because of so many house visitors, birthdays and family weddings. And So I made the decision I will consider using a new goal. Instead of stay with 99 days I’m just likely to read no less than 2 hrs. each day a minimum of 6 days each week on whatever book I've showed up at from my list. I've the following ten so as and I’ll observe how it progresses. I ought to mention I'm quite busy lady despite the fact that I'm not presently working full-time.

  I operate a household by myself for that summer time several weeks of every year. Additionally for this I'm busy with Toastmasters, Scouting, as being a board person in the neighborhood Women’s Center and volunteering in your area having a Nonprofit that can help Immigrants with Settlement. I'm wishing to obtain a job soon so I'll be doing my community activities additionally for this blog and running my household.

  I'll complete this book list and that I aspire to compile my very own because when a lady I've recognized to date that many of these books appeal more to men. Their list has 99 books onto it and just 4 from the books possess a lady author in it 2 which are co-written having a man. And So I intend to suggest a summary of my very own with mainly women authors. I understand one of the reasons I'll have a problem with their list happens because the books won’t always attract my interests.

  So additionally to studying their email list I'll from time to time review books personally I think are simply as helpful to finishing a Feminist or Sustainable Master of business administration.

#mba #diy-mba #skip-mba #personalmba

[caixxa]

fandom snowflake challenge day 3

I have no idea if I can do this the way it’s supposed to but I have wanted to give some recs for a long time. I ramble about my own writing so much that it’s really a time to give credit to others.

This is the task:

In your own space, post recs for at least three fanworks that you did not create. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

Okay, let’s go.

1) Hockey rpf

First, this is the one I praise every chance i get: Why we fight by lllookalive. An absolutely brilliant, beautiful, real, funny, exciting and sexy high school au. I was intrigued by the summary and am eternally grateful I started following the story even though in the beginning I hardly knew who most of the players the characters are based upon are.

In the fic Boston Bruins, Pittsburgh Penguins and Chicago Blackhawks are exceptionally cleverly transformed to rival high schools and their hockey teams, and the players pair up in most surprising ways. Players from other teams make frequent appearances, too - the ensemble is one of the widest I’ve met. For realism, there are straight and bi characters and I think it’s really cool. It’s beautifully written, the world-building and the characterization of these heart-breakingly teenage boys and their families is just phenomenal. Geno flirting to Patrice Bergeron by calling him Prince Patrice is some of the sweetest romance I’ve come across. And the smell of dill and rich yeasty rye bread dough in the kitchen of his Russian family restaurant! Oh! 

I kind of wish I was still living the time this fic was posted twice a week, i really waited for the new update! Now it’s finished, all 78 chapters, more than 200 000 words.

Next, some quick sex & drugs. I was pleasantly surprised the other day when I found this, Start Real Slow by coricomile in my ao3 reading history, I thought I’d never find it again because I didn’t even remember what characters it had. (I was mildly disappointed to notice that it was another Toews/Kane fic, but what can you do, in hockey rpf you waddle through a sea of those (and Sid x Genos, Matts x Marns’s, tbh) to find anything else). But anyway, it was a hilariously written little piece of two rookies smoking weed and ending up experimenting on oral sex.

And speaking of Mitch Marner, || by bauer has one adventurous Leafs rookie, Matt Martin and some white lines.

2) Football rpf

Gosh this gets long! 

I subscribe to  Girls in Chains by downtonarry. This footballers-as-female-prisoners AU has been on hold for months and one of the reasons may be that it has only a fraction of the attention it deserves. 

It has a vast and well portrayed ensemble - look at the ships alone: James Rodríguez/Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi/Neymar, Sergio Agüero/Lionel Messi/Neymar, Sergio Agüero/Lionel Messi, Gerard Piqué/Shakira, Gareth Bale/Luka Modrić, Ivan Rakitić/Marc-André ter Stegen, Marc Bartra/Sergi Roberto, Sergio Agüero/Giannina Maradona... Well written, carefully crafted back stories that raise real issues like drug use, child abuse, sex work, illegal abortion... And the perfect girl Gareth, Gwen.

diplomatic passive aggression by apollothyme its a locked-for-users-fic. An absolutely hilarious Eurovision Song Contest AU with the funniest Zlatan Ibrahimovic cameo I have ever encountered. Toni Kroos is the main character.

Vodka Soda Summer by maschh is another locked work. Since I struggle to write young Gareth Bale myself I’m excited to check other works on the same mission and this one was realistic and beautiful.

#fic #fic recs #fic rec #links #challenge